Many podcasts and books claim to ‘improve your life’ – and time after time we buy into this idea. Why? Because we all want ‘more’ and we want to improve the things and spaces around us.
Don’t get me wrong, change is a good thing! And the desire to create and become the change you need in your own life is one of the most ambitious and important goals you can have.
“But what if I told you that improving your life is less about ‘doing’ and ‘being’ and more about simply taking care of yourself?“
Pauline Leung
What so many of us miss as we chase ‘self-love’ or ‘growth’ is the choices we can make—every single day—to bring us to where we want to be.
There’s an element of physiology right in front of us that we often miss.
Revitalize Yourself by Making the Right Choices
Your wellbeing doesn’t necessarily improve by altering everything around you. In fact, you can improve your wellbeing in the smallest ways: your breath, your nutrition, your exercise, and your sleep.
It’s really that simple (I know that it is not ‘simple’ but remember, every baby step counts!)
So much of our true improvement and change stems from management, routine-building, and diligence. We must understand and listen to what our body needs in order to truly revitalize and nurture ourselves. Then, we must have the focus, discipline and patience to create habits and encourage ourselves to practice these habits until they become routines.
Reduce Stress by Acknowledging & Moving Through It
Stress is inevitable. It’s a part of our daily lives no matter who we are, we’re going to experience stress in some capacity. However, the most important thing we can do when faced with this stress is to acknowledge and distinguish between the different types of stress.
There is a difference between stress that is a product of choices we are making (for example physical stress from a tough workout) or stress that stems from not being aligned to what we care about (for example, stress about a decision that we don’t agree with).
If we’re able to identify where our stress is coming from, dissect the type of stress, and then give a name to it, we can better unpack and move through it.
Focus On Your Impact
We all have two lenses for seeing the world: the one that is focused on ourselves and the one that is focused on others. Both are good (within reason, of course). However, we are often the most fulfilled when we can see the world through our outer-focused lens.
This is our power of persuasion—our innate ability to get people’s attention, and for us to inspire others
We all have the power to influence, and part of truly improving your life is recognizing the power of influence leaning into it. You need to invest in relationships with others (as well as the relationship you have with yourself). As you improve both your relationships and, as a result, your influence, you will find greater happiness and make a bigger impact.
Define Productivity by What Matters to You
We live in a culture that prioritizes productivity. But what does that really mean? In my opinion, productivity is less about doing ‘things’ and more about doing things that matter.
Busy work does not equal being productive.
The sooner we can realize that, the happier we’ll be. We are the most productive when we’re doing what we feel called to do. This is part of the alignment that creates a natural shift. If you actually want to improve your life, you will stop trying to ‘do’ and ‘be’ more and start pursuing what is meaningful to you and others you care about.