Could a world free of
complaints ever exist?
Just imagine…
Welcome,
lighthearted viewers,
to another edition of
Good People, Good Works.
Today we profile
“A Complaint Free World,”
a US-based
non-profit organization
with the mission
to encourage all of us
to end the habit
of complaining
as it results in a far
healthier and happier life.
A Complaint Free World
was founded by
Will Bowen, Lead Minister
of One Community
Spiritual Center
in Kansas City,
Missouri, USA.
The story of
A Complaint Free World
has been featured
on hundreds of US radio
and television programs
as well as in newspapers
across the world.
The reverend has written
two books –
“A Complaint Free World”
and “Complaint Free
Relationships: How to
Positively Transform
Your Personal, Work,
and Love Relationships.”
In December 2009,
he launched his film
“A Complaint Free
Revolution”
which features inspiring
stories of people
from across the USA
and Canada
who have transformed
their lives, relationships
and businesses
by simply ending their
habit of complaining.
One of
the most common questions
I am asked is,
“What is a complaint?”
The dictionary
defines “complain”
as “to express grief, pain
or discontent.”
Now we’re expressing
our complaints,
we speak them aloud
and you would think that
we would be aware of them.
The thing is that
most people complain,
15 to 30 times a day
and have
absolutely no awareness
that they are doing it.
The complaints are
coming out of their mouths;
you would think that
they would hear them,
but they don’t.
I like to say complaining
is like bad breath,
you notice it
when it comes out of
somebody else’s mouth,
but not so much when
it comes out of your own.
What inspired
Reverend Will Bowen
to help others
become complaint free?
Three years ago,
I was doing a series
on prosperity.
I find that people
focus too much on
what is wrong in their lives
as opposed to what is
working in their lives.
And they say they want to
be prosperous, but they’re
so busy complaining
that they’re not going to
manifest anything of value.
So, I gave out
these purple bracelets
one Sunday, and
invited everybody that
every time they caught
themselves complaining,
they’d take the bracelet
off one wrist and
put it on the other wrist.
And they go back and forth
until they go
21 consecutive days,
and we have now sent out
over six million bracelets
to 106 countries
around the world.
Our goal is
to get 60 million people
around the world
to wear these bracelets
and go 21 days
without complaining.
If we can transform
the consciousness
of 60 million people,
that’s just one percent
of the world,
we can transform the
consciousness of the world.
A Complaint Free World
decided that their
sixth millionth bracelet
should be given
to Dr. Maya Angelou,
a prominent
African-American poet
and author, in honor of
her inspirational words
that truly represent the
vision of the organization.
From the very beginning,
we used a quote of her’s
that we thought
symbolized what
we were trying to say.
Becoming complaint-free
is not about shutting up
and sucking up whatever
the world sends you;
it’s about
healthy communication.
If you’ve got an issue,
you speak directly
and only to the person
who can effect the change.
And Dr. Angelou says,
“You don’t like something?
Change it.
If you can’t change it,
change your attitude.
Don’t complain.”
A Complaint Free World
seeks a constructive shift
in our world’s
consciousness, where
people will “focus on
and speak about what
they desire things to be
rather than complaining
about how things are.”
How do I think
the world would be
if one percent of
the world’s population
was complaint free?
Einstein said no genius
has ever used more than
18% of the brain.
But today’s geophysicists
say no genius has ever
used more than 10%
of the brain.
The majority of us mumble
and get around with five,
six, or seven percent.
If we’ve been able to
stay alive at all, alive and
future thinking, alive and
having enough courage
to care for each other,
enough courage to love,
and know that we’re
probably one percent free,
imagine who would we be?
What would happen?
I tell you one thing,
I think war would be
laughed out of the room.
I think the very word,
if somebody said “war,”
another person would say
“You mean am I supposed
to kill somebody because
he doesn’t agree with me?
Ha! I don’t think so.”
If 60 million people were
to become complaint free,
which would be one percent
of the world’s population,
I believe that people
would be so much happier.
When people put
positive energy out and
fill other people’s buckets,
it makes them feel good
and makes other people
feel good and I believe
that putting positive
energy into the world,
into the Universe,
it makes that positive
energy come back to you.
We will pause now
and when we return,
we will find out more about
Reverend Will Bowen’s
A Complaint Free World.
Please stay tuned
to Supreme Master
Television.
I think that the world
would be really
a nicer place and
it would be really good,
in that it would
almost be perfect.
We sit down
before every dinner,
and we sit there
and we go through it,
of what we’re joyful for,
for that day,
and we go back and forth
that I’m thankful for this,
I’m thankful
for this experience,
I’m thankful
for that experience,
and we’re always
focusing on the positive.
And it gets to be a habit,
and we don’t have the
criticism and the negative,
and that’s where it all
started with the bracelet.
Welcome back to
Good People, Good Works,
where we are learning
about a unique
organization called
A Complaint Free World,
a US-based non-profit
organization started by
Reverend Will Bowen
to uplift humanity through
constructive speaking.
Reverend Bowen
first started the movement
in July 2006
with 250 members
of his church
working to end their habit
of complaining.
So we know
complaining is damaging
to every area of our lives;
then how do we become
complaint free?
Well there’s a simple
and easy tool to doing it
and it’s this bracelet
right here.
Now this bracelet,
the Complaint Free
Purple Bracelet
is not a bracelet
that you wear and
it just shows the world
that you support
A Complaint Free World,
this isn’t what this is about.
The idea is every time
you catch
yourself complaining
you take it off one wrist
and you switch it
to the other wrist.
And you switch it
back and forth,
back and forth
with every complaint.
Over 60 million bracelets
have been sent to
106 different countries
thus far.
How has wearing the
Complaint Free bracelet
helped
program participants?
Having the complaint
free bracelet on my wrist,
it’s made me
more aware of
how much I do complain
and it’s helped me cut back,
and I didn’t realize
how much I was
complaining beforehand.
The most challenging
was to accept
when I’d made a remark
or something
that should be classified
as a complaint enough
to move this back
from the right wrist
to the left wrist,
to the left wrist,
to the right wrist.
And to be honest
with myself and not say,
“No that wasn’t something
I have to do that for,”
because I think
it’s real good to be honest
with yourself about this,
that’s the whole idea.
A key component
of the program
is to not complain
for a full 21 days.
Reverend Bowen
now explains
why this time period
is so important.
The idea is
to go 21 consecutive days
without complaining, and
therefore 21 days without
moving the bracelet.
Now
what’s going to happen
is the first several days
you will move it
back and forth
so many times,
people think you have
a nervous disorder,
you just keep switching it
back and forth,
and back and forth.
But in time
you’ll get to where
you’ll go a few hours or
maybe even an entire day.
And then ultimately you
go 21 consecutive days.
Now
why 21 consecutive days?
People believe
it takes 21 days
to form a new habit
and what we want to do
is make being
complaint free habitual
for you.
Is it challenging
to reach the 21st day?
Reverend Bowen
offers his thoughts.
Oh, it’s quite difficult.
And most people
get into it thinking that
it’s going to be easy,
then they discover
how challenging it can be.
It takes anywhere
from four to eight months
I’ve found,
to go 21 consecutive days.
And people get at it
for awhile, and then
they’re embarrassed.
“Oh my gosh!
I’ve been at it
for three months, and
I’m still on day one!”
But that’s typically
the way it works.
It’ll take you
several months to go
one full day, but then
it may take you a week
to go two days,
and then you’re back
on day one, and then
you make it three days.
No one is perfect,
no one is going to
go through the next month
without stumbling
or the next two months
without stumbling.
We all stumble,
the question is
how quickly do we
lift ourselves back up
and put ourselves back
into a place where we are
no longer gossiping, we are
no longer complaining.
Where we’re
using our words in
an appropriate manner.
Our world emanates
from who we are,
so when we change,
our lives change.
I myself have control
over my own life,
and knowing
the power of your words
and the things
that you do with your life,
gives you
a sense of control, and
you can lead your life.
It just gave me
a sense of gratitude.
Some participants of the
A Complaint Free World
program are so enthusiastic
about it they want to
become acquainted with
other like-minded people.
Reverend Bowen
has devised a creative way
to get all those interested
together in one place.
We have found that
people from all over
who have taken this on
want to meet other people,
so we did
A Complaint Free cruise
to the Caribbean last year;
it was very successful.
So this year we’re doing
A Complaint Free cruise
to Alaska (USA).
We’re going to do
a week cruise up to Alaska,
and I’m going to be
speaking and doing
workshops while at sea,
but otherwise
this is just going to be
a wonderful cruise,
and we’re really
looking forward to it.
We salute
Reverend Will Bowen for
his wonderful initiative
that is helping keep people
on a constructive path
in life.
May many more learn of
this splendid program
and experience
the wonderful benefits.
For more details on
A Complaint Free World,
please visit
www.AComplaintFreeWorld.org
Books and other media
by Reverend Bowen
are available at
www.ComplaintFreeWorld.biz
Joyful viewers,
we have enjoyed
your company
on today’s edition of
Good People, Good Works.
Join us next Sunday for
Part 2 of our program on
A Complaint Free World.
Coming up next is
The World Around Us,
after Noteworthy News.
May Heaven
light up your path
with fountains of love,
beauty, and wisdom.
If we were to take
a bird’s eye view of Earth,
what would we see?
This is the premise
behind famed
French photographer
Yann Arthus –
Bertrand’s landmark
eco-documentary
“Home” which depicts
the immense devastation
humanity has caused
to our only planet.
We haven't understood
that we're depleting
what nature provides.
We are destroying
the cycle of a life
that was given to us.
We have forgotten that
resources are scarce.
Please watch Part 2 of
the important film “Home”
Wednesday, March 24,
on Planet Earth:
Our Loving Home.