I’m sure that after surviving 2020, you’ve probably done some reflecting about your life, what aspects you would like to improve, and which you would like to change entirely. For many of us, 2020 brought opportunities to reinvent ourselves whether we liked it or not. So, since it’s technically still a new year, we’re right on time to make some adjustments. If you’re reading this, you most likely want to simplify your life without compromising on quality, and perhaps you feel you’re finally ready to make some things happen once and for all.
A successful life should be aligned with your own belief systems, and not with what society, family, politics, or others say happiness or success is. This is your life and your gift to pursue your own beliefs and what makes you happy. Understanding this liberates you from the burden of living a life that is not authentic, wasting time pursuing things that aren’t right for you. What matters is that you pursue and create what you want for yourself.
In order to start, the first thing to do is define what aspects of your life are important – what you consider will give you success in the form of money, fulfillment, and happiness. This means it’s time to both make some priorities and put aside a few things.
Below are some of the most important aspects to prioritize in your life and how to do so.
Simplify by letting go of what no longer serves you. See life as a journey and learn to move on.
You probably have a very good idea of what no longer serves you. Perhaps it’s a relationship – something you put a lot of effort into making work and it just isn’t. Perhaps it’s trying to make things work with family, really trying to get along and solve issues but it still feels like there’s too much resistance. Perhaps it’s friends you thought shared your values, or even a toxic relationship – someone “special” who isn’t really making you feel special. Maybe your job simply isn’t growing in the way you want, you don’t like your boss or management, or you just don’t see the future there. Well, it’s time to let it all go, because we shouldn’t be in a place where we have to force things. There is truly instant magic when something is meant to happen, and viewing our lives as souls experiencing events on this planet allows us to detach from some of the things we were working so hard to make happen.
Take care of yourself. First, focus on pursuing the work that gives you financial stability and more opportunities.
This is one of the most common issues I see with entrepreneurs, startups, and consultants. They have about 5 businesses, ongoing collaborations, and new projects they are “working on”, but the reality is that when someone is successful, they’re most likely working very well on only 1-2 things – and because they’re doing so well, they can then get a team and delegate tasks in order to pursue other passions. To have a balanced life, you must simplify and stay committed to what gives you profit and financial stability. Other passions can be pursued as hobbies, and if these turn out to be profitable, you may get to a point where you can choose between them. Conversely, if you’re unemployed and not ready to start your business, focus on getting a job first. Taking care of your stability will allow you to expand from there, protecting your efforts.
Don’t let the pursuit of passion take your passion away.
Life isn’t all about work. A person who can take time to stop and enjoy life is much more attractive. Being an entrepreneur, starting a business, or pursuing a passion shouldn’t be the only important aspect of someone’s life. Many entrepreneurs are constantly starting initiatives, adding more ‘incomplete’ or ‘unrealized’ work to their resume but never succeeding and losing their life balance. This starts taking a toll on their personality, from not being able to relax or take time off, not being able to socialize or enjoy activities, means work becomes an addiction that takes over their lives. Remember, pursuing a passion should not be a lonely journey – in fact, it should be just the opposite because you have a mission. Otherwise, your passion becomes a torture. The key is to simplify, relax, and not neglect your passion for life itself. Success happens to joyful personalities who make their entire lives a priority rather than only work.
Pursue your passion intelligently.
Notice how intelligent people are creative when it comes to making practical decisions, whereas a hardworking person may have no trouble working hard but ends up working a lot more and inefficiently, and still fails to achieve results. The key is in the preparation. Taking time to prepare the foundation of your business, goals, and strategies can save you years, allowing you to actually experience success, not just wander around. The more organized you are, the more balanced and healthy a life you can enjoy with family and friends. Wise entrepreneurs value time, set their strategies, and seek results quickly.
Make experiencing love a priority.
This is our mission by being alive. If we think about it, what else could be important? Often, people get stuck on painful experiences, taking time to heal or recover, or they may simply close off entirely. Whatever bad experiences happened, none are worth that – the people who hurt us are not worth it. I say this in the sense that someone should not be so valuable to us that we miss the chance to be loving and experience love every day. If you haven’t yet found love, keep looking for it and keep loving yourself in the process. And if you have found it, make sure to hold onto it, continuing to experience it to its fullest. Love your pets, love what you do, love your work, love your life. Keep in your daily activities the goal to be loving.
Family.
Spending time with family can sometimes be stressful, and getting along can sometimes be challenging. The best way to avoid or handle tension is to be able to walk away. Finding ways to create some space to allow things to cool down, and taking breaks by going for a walk or doing exercise, can really change our perspective on how we react. Moreover, this space can allow us to miss our family, letting us appreciate our interactions with them and having them in our lives so we can have quality of experiences with them.
Relationships.
Life is short, so spending time with the wrong people is a waste of time. There are a lot of people we can meet, and usually, those who leave a mark in our lives do so because of how great they make us feel. We also have that responsibility when it comes to others – we too can make people feel great and provide nurturing experiences in our relationships. Often, people focus on finding someone to “give” us something, but this goes both ways. Most people lose motivation to build relationships because they don’t feel they get much in return – somehow in the interaction, there is a test to see who needs the other more, and the energies shift once that seems obvious. A good, practical way to have healthy relationships is to be okay with what is, to be able to detach when certain negative indicators show up, and to not overly invest when things aren’t reciprocated. Otherwise, it will be a very frustrating relationship. The best way to have balanced and healthy relationships is by having a balanced and healthy relationship with ourselves first. It’s easier to give our best to others from that point without losing the priority of ourselves.
Forgive.
Nothing can feel heavier than carrying the burden or the feeling of hurt, anger, or disappointment, especially when we’re not given an apology. Disappointments can be traumatic and may take a long time to heal. However, a more practical way to learn to forgive is to understand this: whatever wrongdoing was done to us, it was not because we deserved it, and neither was it likely personal. When people do us wrong, it’s sometimes because they can’t handle or resolve some issues and conflicts of their own, whereas we are used to doing so, meaning they can instantly patch or cover up those issues by using this to their advantage. In other words, their actions are sometimes signs of their own desperation. Is this selfish? Probably, but people don’t always stop to ponder, and actions are usually impulsive reactions that come from a place of fear. Once we learn to let go and forgive, we can live a more balanced life.
Give Back.
To be able to receive is to be able to give, and in this world, we’re all in this ride together. No one is exempt from the ups and downs of the wheel of fortune, and just as we’re sometimes at the top, someone else is at the bottom. Nothing is more rewarding than giving something back, even small acts or gestures, from giving a meal to a homeless person to protecting animals and our planet. Giving is actually very simple, but very much rewarding.
Experience Life.
You may be anxious to start traveling and seeing the world, but experiencing life can also be done in your immediate environment simply by being happy where you are, even if you’re not doing much. Life shouldn’t have to be an elaborate project in order to enjoy, and happiness is really a decision we make for ourselves every day. No one and nothing is more important than our peace of mind and our joy at being alive. Confronting challenges or difficult situations should be dealt with, but without taking away from our happiness. Celebrate yourself every day as if it was your last, knowing that you are a wonderful human being who should be celebrated as such. So find time to experience things – it doesn’t have to be a holiday, and trying something new will be nurturing to your soul.
Once in a while, do nothing.
When waking up, take time to enjoy your mornings. Your soul is back on earth to experience life, so enjoy your time here. During your days, find some minutes to simply do nothing. You don’t even need to meditate – we do not always have to fill our time with some activity or other, because not doing anything actually allows for a lot of recovery and acknowledgment to occur in the back of your mind while your body likewise rejuvenates. Enjoy not doing anything to have a balanced life.