Take stock of your day-to-day life. Are you giving to others in your community, or are things a little out of balance where your work and your immediate family get 99% of what you offer the world? You can change that in one day by reconnecting to your dreams. What were your dreams when you were a child? As a teenager? When did you take your first step into adulthood? We’re all striving to make the most of what we’ve got so we can have the most up ahead; we all want better lives. But sometimes this goal in sight becomes a bit blurry, and we start to think that if only we had more money, or different circumstances, or just a little greener grass, we can get what we want and be absolutely happy. Well, I am here to attest that perfect is boring—and the journey that is life should be anything but boring. And while more and better stuff might be fun for a while, the real fun starts when we embrace the intangibles. The ingredients of a well-lived life are yours for the choosing: openness, strength, courage, dignity, responsibility, passion, positivity, energy, beauty, and whatever else you fancy.
It’s time to take control of your destiny. Time to merge your inner child’s enthusiasm with your adult experience. Believe you can live beyond your wildest dreams, voice your desires and act on them, and reap the benefits of a life lived to the hilt!
Uncover Your Soul’s Purpose
My friend and fellow writer Polly Campbell once said, “This isn’t flash happiness, it isn’t the kind that lasts for a few minutes when we get a new toy or enjoy a concert.This is the kind that lingers in the background of our lives, the kind that, even in moments of sadness or frustration, never completely disappears, because if we are living a values-based life, we are also living with meaning and purpose.”
Our best life isn’t a series of moments throughout our story. It’s our entire life; every second is a second where we should be laughing and smiling and feeling on top of the world no matter what. Isn’t that what fairy tales we read as kids are all about? Happily ever afters aren’t just for endings; they are the untold pages you as the heroine haven’t lived out yet. Figuring out how we can get there is gonna be tricky, but not impossible. All it takes is some time, effort, and a little bit of magic.
Take Time to Unplug and Recharge Yourself!
Now that you’ve discovered your mission for every day, let’s talk about ways to fulfill it. First step is to wipe the slate clean of any distractions:
Forego using technological devices today. Texting your friend, watching your favorite show, checking your email… all can wait until tomorrow! Turn off your devices and turn on your senses! Read a book, cook a meal, and enjoy the outdoors by taking a walk or tending to your garden. Technology distracts us from the real world; it occupies our attention with game applications, chat rooms, social media websites, commercials, and so on. Want to know what’s going on in the news? Walk to your nearby newspaper dispenser and grab a copy. On the way there, you might find a new store to explore, or grab a cup of coffee you didn’t know you were craving. What you find outside your device is amazing.
The saying goes that you work to live, but you don’t live to work. Take some time for yourself outside or in between what’s going on at your desk. Begin or finish a personal project that reinvigorates your passion. Go to a store, park, movie theatre, or wherever you think is the perfect place to unwind for however long you need. Even take a quick minute to close your eyes, breathe, and feel all the work your body is doing at that moment. Balance your job with relaxation and energy to simply be.
Pause and see yourself. What is happening in your life right now. Are you okay with all of this? Do you need to back away from some things that are stressing you out? If yes, do just that. The world won’t end because you require a recharge; meanwhile, the quality of your life will absolutely improve.
The Ingredients of a Wonderful Life
Now that you’re refreshed and ready to go, let’s talk about the secret to start living in your prime. And the secret is this: it’s up to you.
Pinpointing the perfect recipe to a wonderful life can’t be done because every one of us is made up of unique experiences, desires, and motivations. Remember all of those ingredients I mentioned earlier? Strength, courage, passion, positivity, energy, the like? They can work for you if you feel like they are helping you. For some, passion and positivity might not be doing the trick, but strength and energy do. And that is fine!
We are all made up of experiences, personality traits, preferences, and everything in between that either we share or don’t. But your life is yours. What your perfect future looks like is a mystery only you can solve, and it’s up to you on where to start.
Here are some general ideas that can help you get one step closer to your goal:
- Be courageous and acknowledge what your heart is saying. Saying that you want more out of life is perfectly good, not to mention essential when shaping your best life. Recognize what you have, what you want, and what you need to do to get it. And don’t just think about it. Speaking them out loud will help paint the picture, not to mention better attract these changes as if they’re listening to you and were just waiting for you to call them over.
- Build up your energy. Self-transformation doesn’t have to start big. Sometimes it’s easier to accomplish when going up your goals than going down. Like grabbing a quick cup of coffee to get through the last half of your shift. Rearrange your bookshelf or closet. Trying a new bath bomb. It’s mind blowing that these little adjustments can really improve your routine. Whether it’s refreshing or exciting, they can only get better the bigger you go in changing your life.
- Write down what makes you happy as it comes. The best things in life can be a daily thing, or a rare moment that you’ll cherish for the rest of your life. Make a list of each one you remember or as it comes, then take in all of those things that brighten your day. Best way to end your day with a touch of excitement about what you’ll add tomorrow.
- Add some beauty into your daily routine. What is your definition of beauty? Is it physical, spiritual, aesthetic, something to find in everyday life or across the world? Something you can bring home or appreciate while you’re there? Once you know the answer, begin looking around for it wherever you go. For me, I love being a part of nature, but I work from my computer most days. So I picked some ground morning glories from my garden and planted them around my computer desk so I can still be surrounded by Mother Nature while I work. A little bit of beauty can really make a difference.
Grow to Learn, Learn to Grow
Your character has to be who you are. What you love about yourself, what you want to improve on, your successes and failures. Honesty and accepting that honesty is key.
Now here’s the most important part to remember when living your best life: live the life with the least regret. When you think about it, a part of you goes, “Wait, isn’t the point that I should have no regret about how I chose to live?” That is true, but we have to be honest with ourselves. We’re human. We make mistakes, or fall out of love with a path that we were ecstatic to be on in the first place. Maybe you got hired into your dream job, only to be stuck in an office needing a change.
Life isn’t a test that we can pass with flying colors. It is a span of experiences where we are learning more and more about ourselves, the world, and how we exist in it. It’s a big world, too, and the amount of choices we have are just as big, if not bigger. And the ones we do pick don’t always turn out to be the ideal one. But that’s okay. It’s okay to regret a choice we made for ourselves, even when trying you are trying to live in your prime. Our souls’ purpose is to make every second count, and making a mistake can absolutely be a part of it because it will help refine the rest of our time here on this planet. If we’re always wallowing in our choices, we lose those many other moments that make up for it.
Grow from what you know so you can live your best life. That is one choice you’ll never regret.
This guest post was authored by Becca Anderson
Becca comes from a long line of preachers and teachers from Ohio and Kentucky. The teacher side of her family led Becca to become a women’s studies scholar who writes The Blog of Awesome Women. An avid collector of meditations, prayers, and blessings, she helps run a “Gratitude and Grace Circle” that meets monthly at homes, churches, and bookstores. Becca Anderson credits her spiritual practice with helping in her recovery from cancer and wants to share this with anyone who is facing difficulty in their life. She is the author of Think Happy to Stay Happy, Real Life Mindfulness, and Every Day Thankful. Becca shares her inspirational writings and suggested acts of kindness at https://thedailyinspoblog.wordpress.com/.
Be sure to pick Becca’s Badass Affirmations and The Book of Awesome Women Writers.
The post Live in Your Prime All the Time: Ways to Start Living Your Best Life Every Day appeared first on Ms. Career Girl.