Ted Kuntz carries three coins in his pocket that he will never spend. Every morning, he slips them into his right pocket, and one by one, as he does something nice for another person, they're slipped into his left.

"The goal is to have all three coins in the right pocket by the end of the day," said Kuntz in an interview in January 2008.

They're called Kindness Coins, and this author, psychotherapist, counselor, and speaker minted them as a reminder to boost his daily acts of kindness.

The concept is a familiar one. Actors Kevin Spacey and Helen Hunt took it to the big screen in "Pay it Forward", and Oprah's "gratitude list" urges millions of viewers to shift attention towards the positive of life, and away from the negative.

"Most of us aspire to be peaceful, joyful people, but I don't think we know how to do that. We're taught to be angry and afraid," Kuntz said. "The average person thinks nine times as many negative thoughts as positive ones."

"We're ill-prepared to change and we're waiting for something outside of ourselves when what's really under our power of control is what's in ourselves," he added.

Kuntz personally knows what it's like to be negative. After his infant son was permanently injured after receiving a vaccine many years ago, he lived in a place of anger, fear and resentment.

"It was too hard," he recalled of those trying years. "So I began a personal journey to understand how to have more peace and joy in my life."

His book, "Peace Begins with Me," which received honorable mention by the Independent Book Publishers Association in 2006, has been part of this process and includes insights about how to take responsibility for one's happiness.

The first step, Kuntz said, is acknowledging one's thoughts, noticing how one thinks. After that, he teaches how to use the mind and imagination creatively, rather than reactively, by being able to specifically answer such questions as "What do I intend?" and "What am I focused on?"

Kuntz said that paying attention to one's thoughts is about more than joy and peace; it's also about health.

"Research says the body doesn't distinguish between real and imagined thoughts. Your body comes under the same stress and turmoil as your brain."

Stress is certainly serious issue, affecting more than 40 percent of adults. The statistic bandied around most claims that stress-related ailments and complains account for 90 percent of all doctor visits.

Statistics Canada noted last December that stress seriously contributes to lowered job productivity, disability days and absenteeism in Canada.

Stress, Kuntz said, is a fact of life, but we can chose to respond to stress in a positive way, thus reducing the effects of stress and living happier and healthier lives.

In case he forgets, he's got his three Kindness Coins in his pocket as a reminder.

For spreading this message, two of Kuntz's two most recent recognitions are the Port Coquitlam Chamber of Commerce Lifetime Legacy award, and a Spirit of Community Legacy Leadership award.

Kuntz spoke at a HANS-sponsored talk on January 24, 2008 in Vancouver. DVDs of Kuntz's talk are available for purchase or as a free DVD choice with a new HANS membership or renewal. Call HANS at 604-435-0512.

Want to search for other articles that may interest you?

Readers of this article also enjoyed...