Seven steps to enjoying life - by courtesy of Richard Cawte

1. Remember the benefit of silence.

Why is it that so many people are obsessed with filling their day with action and noise?

Adults become terrified at the idea that they might not have something to do AT ALL TIMES. Those that are parents transfer the terror to the children. The lines: “Oh my god, what do I DO with the kids?” are spoken with a shudder as though every second of the child's day MUST be filled with something.

Some children cry despair if the world they face is not a full-on bombardment of plastic toys or fast moving TV screens. Whatever our status or age we all seem to live in a world that regards “nothing to do” with horror,

We are afraid of silence. We are afraid of confronting (or meeting) our true selves. Leave the television on and there are no awkward pauses in conversation (because there is no meaningful conversation!) There is no time to reflect, to create humor to recount a story.

Yet if we were all to do “nothing” more often, we might find ourselves more relaxed, more in control of our thoughts and emotions and more able to communicate effectively.

Downtime is vital, being still and quiet in the midst of a moving noisy world is in itself a good thing. It encourages thought, it encourages self-awareness.

And the onus is on the mind to be creative, truly creative: to make something of nothing, rather than having everything plunked in front of it, ready made.

My advice is simple, at times do absolutely nothing. Provide no distractions. Switch of the mobile phone, take the landline phone off the hook, have no TV, newspapers, radio no loud music, no toys, games - in short, nothing!

Otherwise your engine-speed gets accustomed to being highly revved. Without downtime, you will find it harder to unwind, as you grow older.

And if the idea of really having nothing to do is just too scary, then take up a meditation or yoga technique that you can practice, alone, and then silence.

My tips: take time away from all gadgets of distraction, television, tablets, radio, phones, newspapers,

learn to relax and spend time with yourself,

learn a meditation or relaxation technique

2. The magic of reading.

Reading helps to expand your vocabulary and therefore your ability to construct your own sentences and to communicate with others. It is far more creative process than watching a movie or a televised version of a book, because you create the characters the scenery, the whole experience in your imagination, you move through the book at your own speed, often pausing to allow thoughts to wander off a tangent, or to acknowledge a truth or remember an incident from your own life that the book has brought to mind. It's not so long since the majority of people were illiterate. Then came a great focus on helping people learn to read. I forecast that within 10 years the majority will once more be illiterate, that this unable to read more than a text message, McDonald's menu or a TV Guide.

“He who does not read is no better off than he who cannot read!”

Read more! But be discerning. Try to read stories that enrich your world experience. The odd thriller or murder mystery is fine in moderation, but a diet of crime fiction really gives your subconscious a repeated message that the world is a scary place.

Likewise newspapers concentrate only on the bad things that are happening while gossip magazines feed on other people's pain and distress.

Allowing bad news and gossip in your life rubs off and is unnecessary.

There are many good things happening in the world and it's important to remember that and to go on and read the positive stories.

Read to the people (or the pets) in your life. If you have children, read to them. Read your favorite passages, plays, poems, and limericks to each other.

Sit quietly with each of your reading your own book.

And if you don't have money to buy books and can’t get to a library, make stories up yourselves. All of us can do that.

You might be surprised how much fun it is.

What's more, it's free.

A few tips: Choose what you read with care.

See the inspiring books section of the website for reading ideas, Make up your own stories and share them with others.

3. Music feeds the soul!

Did you know that listening to music stimulates precisely the same inner pleasure system as watching television?

But it doesn't short-circuit the brain at the same time.

Music stimulates the brain's dopamine circuits and activates the same brain regions as euphoria-inducing things such as food, sex recreational drugs.

While television hi-jacks these regions and corrupts the mechanisms by tricking the brain into thinking it is relaxing when it is not, music bestows a genuine reward on the body.

What's more, studying music actually promotes a child's intellectual development, increasing their IQs in all areas.

My tip: make time to listen to music,

4. Art, Craft and Home Study.

Learning to paint has a very similar effect on the brain as music.

No paints? A pencil and some paper will do. Why not order a “how to paint” home study course?

It doesn't matter if you have never done any drawing or painting in your life.

It doesn't matter if you genuinely have no artistic talent.

To just make marks on paper is a liberating and creative endeavor.

Do you have a family? Are you looking for shared activity?

It's great to learn things WITH your kids, instead of teaching or instructing, and it's great for them to see you in a new light as a beginner just like them.

My tip: Other crafts and activities to consider: flower arranging, knitting and crochet, making home made cards, scrapbooking.

5. Radio and Audio.

One of the great pleasures in life is to sit and listen to an audio track or a story on the radio with other members of your family,

Just as music encourages growth in parts of the mind that is watching television stunts, so does the act of listening to the spoken words.

Each listener has his or her own vision of the characters, the settings and the story.

Yet the activity is a shared one.

You experience together, share laughter together and create the story simultaneously.

The spoken word has a great power on the subconscious and without the distraction of the moving images on the television screen, the mind is free to drink in the meaning of words.

It expands its own lexicon as a result in a way that it cannot when watching television.

Once again, this is a simple, cheap and easy activity to take part in.

Surely the most tired parent can put an audio CD into a machine and switch the “on” button just as easily as slumping in front of a TV screen, isn't it?

The rewards are great.

My tips: listening to children's stories, especially fairy tales, myths, legends and fables is equally rewarding for adults and children alike. So consider doing this, even if you don't have children!

6. Growing things brings life.

Here's a simple one, and you don't have to have a big garden or allotment to enjoy the benefits. It has been proved in recent tests that people who are exposed to more greenery are less likely to be violent or aggressive.

They are also able to concentrate more and interact socially more easily than people living in inner cities.

Whereas television and computer games stimulate the stress- producing nervous system, greenery does the opposite.

The bottom line is that the blade of grass does not offer criticism, bad news, instruction or negative images.

As a result, it encourages self-esteem. It's that simple.

For those of you thinking that it is not possible to get yourselves or your kids into a greener environment on a regular basis, why not grow a few plants indoors?

No matter how small your living space, this can be achieved.

You'll see and feel an immediate response and it will be a positive one.

If you can't do this, research has shown that just thinking about plants, having paintings of plants on your walls or using nature style pictures as your screensaver has a beneficial effect, significantly lowering our heart rates.

My tips: resolve to grow one living thing no matter how small the space, it's possible to have a pot plant or a windowsill garden.

Hang at least one painting or print of a plant, a garden or nature scene in your home.

If you have a garden use it. Make the effort to take a walk outside everyday, no matter the weather.

7. Outdoor activities and exercise.

We all know that taking a regular exercise is beneficial for mind and body. It's a well-documented fact. It's interesting that in a world of increasing television-viewing and sedentary jobs, action and sports-oriented holidays are more and more popular.

We are biologically hardwired to need some exercise and some gentle adrenaline-stimulation.

Just 10 minutes of exercise per day can increase your endorphin levels for an hour

For adults, there is added benefit of feeling and increased self- confidence and heightened sex drive as a result. Research has shown that not only do adults who take regular exercise feel and increase the ability to be sexually aroused, they also have more intense sexual climaxes as a result. This includes people of all ages, including those age 60 and above.

So the quality of life is enhanced.

Respecting our own bodies leads to greater respect of others and decreases feelings of inadequacy that lead to aggression.

One thing all parents can do is set aside time for exercise both for themselves and their children.

Again, if the precedents are set when we are young enough, they are far more likely continued into adulthood.

Exercise doesn't have to involve gym membership, sports or exercise classes or having a home gym.

Walking is one of the best exercises you can take and it's free.

Even if you live in a city block or built up area, taking a walk is possible. Walk at steady pace for 20 minutes every day. While walking just notice what is around you. Try to see the beauty or the story behind all you see. Even if a scene seems ugly or rundown, give it positive attention by trying to find one good thing about what you see. If you can walk in a beautiful environment, all the better, but don't dismiss what's on your doorstep.

Taking time to really see what's in your immediate environment may open a new and surprising world for you.

My tips: Walking is one of the best exercises you can take

Walk for 20 minutes every day.

It's just as possible to take a walk in an urban wasteland as it is to walk in the country so try to see the beauty and the story in all locations.

And my key overall tip: turn off the television.

The beauty of our world however is that many of the solutions. I have touched on in this topic are inexpensive and easy to implement.

Yes, something very basic does need to change in our homes and it needs to happen all over the world.

But it can do so in a matter of seconds.

All it takes is to press the “off” button on the remote control and to flick on the inner button of “responsibility”.

Parents - you will find it easier, not harder, to juggle work and parenting responsibilities, because your children will be more able to occupy themselves more creative, less demanding, less hyperactive.

They will, in a word, be more responsible, and the world will be a freer place as a result,

My conclusion.

I'm not one for extreme solutions. Balance is important.

But if we do not quickly curb up the amount of television or tablets watched the alternative is that mankind will drift into an ever-increasing state of lethargy within which thousands of years of evolution are replaced by instant decline and the destruction of the very habit that sustains us.

We will act as parasites sucking the life from our host and eventually killing ourselves, or will we prove ourselves to be sentient beings aware of a fruitful future?

Responsibility is the key to Freedom.

The choice, for now, is ours.

Choose wisely!