There are so many important things in life. Some of these things aren't really things; perhaps they are the precious people in your life - your family or loved ones. But please forgive my lack of distinction between people, places and things.
I want to impress upon you the most important aspects of life and so I ask you to indulge me and allow me the flexibility to reference anything, anybody or any place as things - just for the purpose of this blog post. I promise, it will help you gain valuable insights into maximizing your time on earth.
You'll notice that The 11 Most Important Things in Life are not prioritized. This list includes powerful dynamics and you decide which ones are the most important to you - my point is only that nothing is more important than these 11 things.
Your Beliefs about life - religious views are critical forces in your life. If you believe and have faith in your religion - regardless of which religion, then you need to align your life to those principals. I'm not saying the sky will fall on your world if you do not, but your inner being will be beset with turmoil if 1) you have deep religious beliefs and 2) how you live your life does not align to those beliefs.
Your Thoughts - thoughts are extremely powerful forces. We are what we think about. Many people spend their lives in 2 specific forms of thought: 1) Fear and 2) Worry. These are both deathtraps. You need to free your mind from thoughts of fear or worry if you want to realize a complete journey in this world. A part of your thoughts is your ego. It is important to distinguish between a strong ego and a big ego. Be confident about who you are not how big you are.
Your Interpretations - anything that ever happens to you in life has only the meaning that you assign to it. It doesn't matter what it is - it matters how you interpret the event and how you react to it. And a big part of our interpretations is our memory. How we chose to reference our experiences and past interactions with others, whether positive or negative, joyful or sad, have a profound effect on the quality and quantity of our years alive.
Your Feelings - feelings are based on our interpretations and are important to how our subconscious mind focuses on the world. By having a healthy view on life (like ensuring that your living is aligned to your beliefs about life) you free yourself up to experience life without distraction.
Your Emotions - when you get emotionally excited about something - positive or negative (for instance when you experience extreme joy or deep anger) these are the times when you are truly alive. Learning how to master your emotions is one of the most critical lessons of life.
Your Word and Actions - how you 'express' yourself (by word or action) is your statement. It may not be genuine or it could be authentic. Your behavior is mostly what the world will judge you by - your activities and your results. But please notice that what other people think about you is not one of the The 11 Most Important Things in Life. In the end, it's not what people think about you, it's what you think they think about you. Your willingness to make mistakes is a big part of our behavior and a core component to success in any area of life; there is no substitute for experience and experience comes from failure.
Your People - whether it be your immediately family or a nation to which you are willing to lay down your life. The people that you hold dear to you are valuable beyond measure. 'Your People' includes your peers. I believe that one of the supreme truths in life is that, ultimately, we perform to the expectations of our peer group. So if you want to live in a country club - hang out with those that live in country clubs. If you want your marriage to last 50 years, associate with couples and people who have a deep commitment to their families.
Your Love - whether it be your god, your family, another person, an enemy or your passion in life - perhaps a hobby that you've enjoyed since childhood or a sport or other passion; the loves of our life are the hallmark of our existence.
Your Time - when it comes to time, you can either invest it or spend it; there is no such thing as saving time. How you spend your time is the biggest indicator to what is important to you.
Your Vision - how you see your future and your expectations for tomorrow make your vision your future. This is one of the most precious levers that we are blessed with - take advantage of your power.
Your Soul - this article is about helping you realize important things that you need to manage to maximize your time on this earth. But whether you live to be 100 or even 200 years old, it will seemingly go by in a flash. Have you ever thought about eternity? It is a fairly daunting proposition isn't it? Forever is a really, really long time. Your spirit, your soul is the most enduring part of your being. P. Teilhard D. Chardin once said: "we are not physical beings having a spiritual experience, we are spiritual beings having a physical experience". And nothing could be more true.
Now I ask you, do you notice what each of these things have in common? Take a quick look. They all, each and every one of them, are YOUR things. By your, I mean that YOU own these things.
And that is a beautiful thing because YOU are in control. You have the power to change your world in dramatic ways - simply by altering how you manage the items (people, places and things) listed above.
Grab a strong vision of who you want to become - it works the same whether it is for weight loss, obtaining a degree or certification, launching a new career or finding a spouse. And Let The Vision Empower You!
I want to impress upon you the most important aspects of life and so I ask you to indulge me and allow me the flexibility to reference anything, anybody or any place as things - just for the purpose of this blog post. I promise, it will help you gain valuable insights into maximizing your time on earth.
You'll notice that The 11 Most Important Things in Life are not prioritized. This list includes powerful dynamics and you decide which ones are the most important to you - my point is only that nothing is more important than these 11 things.
Your Beliefs about life - religious views are critical forces in your life. If you believe and have faith in your religion - regardless of which religion, then you need to align your life to those principals. I'm not saying the sky will fall on your world if you do not, but your inner being will be beset with turmoil if 1) you have deep religious beliefs and 2) how you live your life does not align to those beliefs.
Your Thoughts - thoughts are extremely powerful forces. We are what we think about. Many people spend their lives in 2 specific forms of thought: 1) Fear and 2) Worry. These are both deathtraps. You need to free your mind from thoughts of fear or worry if you want to realize a complete journey in this world. A part of your thoughts is your ego. It is important to distinguish between a strong ego and a big ego. Be confident about who you are not how big you are.
Your Interpretations - anything that ever happens to you in life has only the meaning that you assign to it. It doesn't matter what it is - it matters how you interpret the event and how you react to it. And a big part of our interpretations is our memory. How we chose to reference our experiences and past interactions with others, whether positive or negative, joyful or sad, have a profound effect on the quality and quantity of our years alive.
Your Feelings - feelings are based on our interpretations and are important to how our subconscious mind focuses on the world. By having a healthy view on life (like ensuring that your living is aligned to your beliefs about life) you free yourself up to experience life without distraction.
Your Emotions - when you get emotionally excited about something - positive or negative (for instance when you experience extreme joy or deep anger) these are the times when you are truly alive. Learning how to master your emotions is one of the most critical lessons of life.
Your Word and Actions - how you 'express' yourself (by word or action) is your statement. It may not be genuine or it could be authentic. Your behavior is mostly what the world will judge you by - your activities and your results. But please notice that what other people think about you is not one of the The 11 Most Important Things in Life. In the end, it's not what people think about you, it's what you think they think about you. Your willingness to make mistakes is a big part of our behavior and a core component to success in any area of life; there is no substitute for experience and experience comes from failure.
Your People - whether it be your immediately family or a nation to which you are willing to lay down your life. The people that you hold dear to you are valuable beyond measure. 'Your People' includes your peers. I believe that one of the supreme truths in life is that, ultimately, we perform to the expectations of our peer group. So if you want to live in a country club - hang out with those that live in country clubs. If you want your marriage to last 50 years, associate with couples and people who have a deep commitment to their families.
Your Love - whether it be your god, your family, another person, an enemy or your passion in life - perhaps a hobby that you've enjoyed since childhood or a sport or other passion; the loves of our life are the hallmark of our existence.
Your Time - when it comes to time, you can either invest it or spend it; there is no such thing as saving time. How you spend your time is the biggest indicator to what is important to you.
Your Vision - how you see your future and your expectations for tomorrow make your vision your future. This is one of the most precious levers that we are blessed with - take advantage of your power.
Your Soul - this article is about helping you realize important things that you need to manage to maximize your time on this earth. But whether you live to be 100 or even 200 years old, it will seemingly go by in a flash. Have you ever thought about eternity? It is a fairly daunting proposition isn't it? Forever is a really, really long time. Your spirit, your soul is the most enduring part of your being. P. Teilhard D. Chardin once said: "we are not physical beings having a spiritual experience, we are spiritual beings having a physical experience". And nothing could be more true.
Now I ask you, do you notice what each of these things have in common? Take a quick look. They all, each and every one of them, are YOUR things. By your, I mean that YOU own these things.
And that is a beautiful thing because YOU are in control. You have the power to change your world in dramatic ways - simply by altering how you manage the items (people, places and things) listed above.
Grab a strong vision of who you want to become - it works the same whether it is for weight loss, obtaining a degree or certification, launching a new career or finding a spouse. And Let The Vision Empower You!