"The key thought that has most guided my life has been 'your thoughts control your world.' It's sort of a take-off on 'the power of positive thinking' or 'mind over matter.' But, whatever, it has been my guiding light.

When situations look bleak, I think about the wondrous times we live in. We're living longer, healthier lives, and we have more abundance than our ancestors could ever have dreamed of.

With today's instant communication and 24-hour news, we are often bombarded with depressing information.

Recently, for example, people became depressed because the financial markets and our economy have crashed due to greed, ineptness and corruption.

However, I refuse to be depressed and instead look for an opportunity to express generosity. Give more to charity, help a friend (or stranger), find some small way to go against the tide of pessimism."