I wasn’t going to mention it. But then I realized I want to say thank you to Bolt-Hole readers. So, thank you. I appreciate all 1,000 of you!

In case you missed them, here are the latest stories:

Happy New Year folks. May you bathe in excellent health and wellbeing. ✨

Few people can say they don’t want to be happy. The search for elation is often a lifelong goal. But we are joyful on and off throughout our lives. Happiness isn’t absent. It’s just not constant, and we don’t need to chase it. Rather, it leaps out of the blue and grabs us. So, isn’t it absurd to seek it?

It’s not unusual to find a few students who train as counselors need to explore personal issues. Morris was one of those people. He was on a quest to discover happiness and overthrow his painful past.

He often sat next to me during class. …

You’ve probably heard the advice do what you love umpteen times, yet it didn’t register. We often put off carrying out those actions that bring us the most joy because, well, there’s always time for them later. Tomorrow, or another day, when we’re not so tired or busy, we’ll write, dance, or create a masterpiece. Or so we imagine. That day may not come, though. Is our lack of enthusiasm to plug into our vital spark a problem?

Bliss

Your bliss comes from what you love to do. It’s an outcome of the enjoyable things you do, even if they don’t offer external rewards like money or praise. Whether they provide financial gain and respect doesn’t matter. They give you such a buzz and complete fulfillment; you need nothing else from them. …

Your days will seep down an endless plughole if you’re not careful. You’ll get out of bed, perform a familiar routine, have the same old thoughts, and then go back to sleep. If you follow the same habits, and preserve the mindset that got you where you are today, there’s no hope for a better life. Do these sentiments strike a chord? Then it’s time to power-up your life and ask 10 breakthrough questions.

What quality do I want to embody most?

To transform into an ideal version of you, take action. Identify a major quality you want to embody. To uncover it, look at the people you most admire. What’s terrific about them? …

Author of “It’s never about the money,” Pegi Burdick, is often referred to as a financial whisperer. Formerly the vice present of a knitwear company in Los Angeles, Burdick noted many customers made duplicate orders. They would purchase the same product again and again, and she wondered why.

Sometimes they were secretive about how they spent money too, spreading payments across several accounts so their spouses wouldn’t recognize their spending habits.

Burdick was curious about what made people buy products they clearly didn’t need, especially repeatedly. Who needs seven identical black cardigans, for instance?

Spending addiction

“The biggest problem people have across the board is a disconnection between who they authentically are and who they’ve learned to become in order to survive.” Disconnection, Explains Burdick, means “you have a lack of emotional intimacy.” …

Your passion might be a surprising source of wealth. But the journey to success is rarely quick and you need backbone to get ahead. Without considerable pluck and willpower, you’re likely to give-up before you see positive results.

How many times have you heard the advice ‘do what you love’ and wondered whether some crooked sycophant was leading you into a piranha pit? We’re surrounded by money-making stories, often told by ‘experts’ who say they have secret information that will make you rich.

We all know some of these folks aren’t actually as wealthy as they suggest. After all, would you bother to tap out articles about how well-heeled and clever you were if you genuinely had money? Probably not. …

Loneliness doesn’t only spring from solitude. The biggest loneliness of all comes from a lack of self-esteem. Self-worth, whereby you recognize your intrinsic value, improves resilience and anchors you. Without it, you are at the mercy of other people to boost your morale.

What is loneliness?

Loneliness is a sense of separation. We might imagine it only stems from being isolated from people. The truth, though, is many people are desperately lonely despite having family, friends, colleagues, and a wide social network.

Only certain kinds of relationships quell loneliness when you don’t see your own company as valuable and fulfilling. The most satisfying relationships involve quality presence. …