P. M Forni's Choosing Civility: The Twenty-Five Rules Of Considerate Conduct

How many times a day do we let small, irrelevant things get to us, causing us to complain and seem like the Debby Downer of our friend group? I for one will agree that I have a problem with complaining about things that don’t even matter really. I complained so much, I never really noticed I was doing it. P.M Forni is an Italian award-winning professor at John Hopkins University and a graduate of the University of Pavia. One of his biggest achievements is his book Choosing Civility: The Twenty-Five Rules of Considerate Conduct, which has been translated into German and Italian, and influenced millions across the globe (JHU Forni’s Background). As we began reading Choosing Civility in class, I caught myself complaining about having to read a book that at the time I thought would be pretty irrelevant. However after reading this book of the twenty-five rules we need to follow, one rule really stood out to me. That rule was that we should Refrain from Idle Complaints (Forni pg. 136). The more I thought about this rule, the more I became self conscious of the fact that I complained twenty-four seven. After a week of trying this rule out, I think Forni was right. If we refrain from idle complaints, then in the long it will lead to a happier life. I tried living strictly to this rule for a week, I decided if I began complaining, …show more content…
It took time, practice, and patience to teach myself to stop what I was doing wrong, look around, and appreciate the world surrounding me. Our society in the United States, has taught us to always think “big” or go home, but some believe thinking smaller will lead to more happiness. Always thinking of “bigger and better,” can lead to people feeling exhausted or inadequate, and feeling this way is why people complain. We are dissatisfied with our lives. Fortunately, studies are showing when we take a moment “to stop and smell the roses”, we become more satisfied with our