One set of parents.

Six children…three boys and three girls.

One housekeeper.

One dog.

And a misunderstood illusion.

You most likely have figured out who I’m talking about…the Brady Bunch.

But the misunderstood illusion…I’ll be coming back to that in a minute.

First the Brady Bunch.

Of course this was a TV show that originally aired back in 1969 and was based around a fictional family.

And most people who have watched it looked at the Brady Bunch as the “perfect” family…

The nice house…stable family…the children who seemed “well off”…you get the idea.

As a result, some people would compare their own family to the Brady Bunch…

Meaning that their own family wasn’t perfect and that they wish theirs was “perfect” like the Brady Bunch seemed to be.

Now if you’ve ever seen the Brady Bunch have you ever compared your family to either theirs?

And even if you never saw the Brady Bunch have you ever compared your family to someone else’s “perfect” family and wish yours was like there’s?

The same is true about your life.

And brings up the thought of…

Are you living the Brady Bunch life?

1. Using the illusion- It’s rather ironic that humans have a tendency to say one thing…which they think means the opposite…yet turns out to mean what they intended in the first place.

And the Brady Bunch is a perfect example of this.

Why?

Because most people saw the Brady Bunch as the perfect family…one that seemed completely unrealistic…then compared their own family to it…and then realized theirs was no different…

And then realized theirs was perfect after all.

It comes down to this…

Even though the Brady Bunch was based on a fictional family that seemed like the perfect All American family…it is actually based on every family.

How do you know?

Because when you watch each episode of the Brady Bunch…and pay attention…you’ll see moments of support and challenge, pleasure and pain…agreement and disagreement…and other pairs of opposites occurring…equally.

Look and sound familiar?

It does because it’s in every family…mine…yours…all of them.

That right there is what a “perfect” family is.

And this is the misunderstood illusion I mentioned earlier…the notion that the Brady Bunch is a perfect family…and that yours isn’t.

Yet…

As long as you embrace both sides equally…it is perfect.

This not only relates to families, but to your life as well.

Which brings up the next part which also makes up the misunderstood illusion.

2. The peaceful war- Many people saw this in the Brady Bunch…and many…to include well known transformational leaders…are promoting this misunderstood illusion as well…

The idea of trying to live a happy and peaceful life.

In the Brady Bunch some would see this illusion within the family…

As it relates to you…it’s your life along with your family.

Think about this for a moment.

Scan back through your own life up until today. Look in your family as well.

When you do can you see that there’s been happy and sad moments? Can you also see that there’s been peace and war?

With that being said…

Who in the world came up with the idea that you’re going to live a happy and peaceful life?

And the same is true with your family. Who came up with the idea of having a happy and peaceful family?

Now of course this isn’t being negative.

Instead…

It’s the way to see how the “peace” and “war” aspect…the “happy” and “sad” moments are vital for a loving family to exist…and the same is true when it comes to living a fulfilled life.

In fact…

You want to know the only way that you’ll ever have a “peaceful” family?

Look for a family in your neighborhood that you may see as being “jerks” and get into a huge argument with them. In other words start a “war” with them and watch what happens.

Your own family will unite with each other and then you’ll have a peaceful family.

It sounds funny…yet it’s true…and I’ve been on both sides of it.

This type of thing was also seen in some of the episodes in the Brady Bunch.

3. Fun for all- My two favorite characters in the Brady Bunch were Jan and Peter, who happened to be the middle children in the family.

It’s interesting…

Because even back then when I was 10..11…I was actually seeing life from a two sided perspective and didn’t fully realize it.

Case in point here…

The middle children in the Brady Bunch being my favorite characters…along the story lines of the Brady Bunch episodes which obviously had a two sided perspective.

Yet…

There was another part that was also involved…

I call it the fun for all factor.

And what I mean by this is that there was always a “fun” part in the Brady Bunch episodes.

Whether it was the boys playing sports…or the girls having a slumber party…or the entire family going on a vacation to Hawaii…there was that “fun factor” coming into play.

The same is true for you.

Where is the fun factor in your life?

Is it among your family…friends…co workers?

Does it involve…going to a movie…going on vacation…laughing among each other…what is it for you?

Because even when you see life from a two sided perspective, it’s that “fun for all” factor which adds an extra touch of fulfillment.

It’s what makes your life…and the lives of others…that much more inspiring.

And this is what drew me to watch the Brady Bunch to begin with.

In fact…this is what draws me to just about everything I love doing…to include people as well.

Obviously…

Each person has a different way of showing it. Some people just come right out and are blatant about it.

Others are fun in a quiet and “non obvious” way.

In either case it’s this “fun” side of you that also makes up the uniqueness of who you are.

It’s yet another way of how you provide tremendous value to the world by just being you.

And…

It’s also a way of getting others and the world to see how special of a person you are.