What is the secret to a great life? A great life begins with how we think and where we focus. Do we focus on the things that bother us the most? Are we focused on what others said or did? Perhaps we center our attention on some distant memory. The problem is we spend too much time in thought and fail to listen to our hearts.
I believe that if you follow your heart you will be successful in one way or another. Old-fashioned as that might sound, the philosophy is true.
What I found over the years was when I focused less on my problems and more on the solutions, things somehow fell into place. I discovered the solution always rested somewhere between my authenticity and the truth of the matter. Years ago, I did what I thought was right, (even though it was all wrong) and that was staying stuck. Why I believed staying stuck was ok, who knows? How could a great life be achieved if we remain in a troubled state?
A troubled state isn’t worthy of time, energy, or reflection. Being worried, anxious, and bothered, while fretting over what will perhaps happen, never helps us in the long run. When we start thinking different we see things differently. Like, what will happen if we decided to just let go, to take a chance on something better, and to figure it all out when we get there? But then fear takes over and supersedes any attempt to discover the secret… the secret to a great life.
LESSONS IN LIFE
The secret of living a life of excellence is merely a matter of thinking thoughts of excellence. Really, it’s a matter of programming our minds with the kind of information that will set us free.
Ultimately, I learned the lesson of a lifetime, and that was where we focus is usually where we end up. Perhaps, some people gain this understanding early, whereas I had to repeat the lesson a few times before I finally understood its concept. When getting from point A to B, if intently fixed on B then that’s where we’re headed and more than likely where we’d end up. However, what if we really don’t want to go there? Well, then just shift your focus and set your intention elsewhere. Everyone has options. Once we refocus and set our sights on the alternatives, the likelihood is we’d end up somewhere else instead. But this doesn’t work because to focus on too much only leads to nowhere. The key is to zero in on what, how, when, whom, and aligning it to where it is you want to be.
Problems always seem to arise whenever we focus on too much of the stuff that doesn’t matter. When we focus on too many options, too many distractions, too much of everything else except for what we really want, need, and love, then we eventually lose the way to happiness. The challenge is to keep the ball of momentum rolling toward what we truly want in our lives.
LIVING FEARLESSLY
I think sometimes our fears hold us back, and it’s about having no fears and living with no regrets. Whether you fail or succeed, just make sure you have no regrets.
It’s important to move toward what you fear the most because that’s usually where success lives and where true love resides. But we never go there because of fear. These fears will have us dancing with illusions which unfortunately manifest into something other than a great life. Hold on, just a moment… the love story didn’t even have a chance because we never allowed for it to begin. The same goes with the dream we failed to launch. Similar to what we envisioned for our lives yet never set in motion. Nevertheless, things are assured to get more awkward along the way, especially when we or someone else plants seeds of discouragement. This will have us hightailing it in another direction altogether, taking the wrong road, and missing those opportunities in life and in love.
There’s a saying, we harvest what we plant. We have the tendency to over-sow seeds of wrong thinking, unfortunately these seedlings grow into nothing but regrets. Years later, we lament those missed opportunities. What happened? Overthinking is what happened. Instead of taking a chance, you’ve not only talked yourself out of something better but you convinced yourself all was well, when it wasn’t.
There’s a time in your life where you’re not quite sure where you are. You think everything’s perfect, but it’s not perfect… Then one day you wake up and you can’t quite picture yourself in the situation you’re in. But the secret is, if you can picture yourself doing anything in life, you can do it.
VALUABLE INSIGHTS FROM THOSE WHO’VE BEEN THERE AND NOW SHARE THE SECRET TO A GREAT LIFE
I can’t emphasize the importance of listening to your heart. To pay close attention to the time you have, and to make those wrongs, right. Your heart knows the truth. It whispers, it nudges, and sometimes courageously shares its secret… it discloses where you are now, isn’t where you belong. Even though we hear those gentle murmurs, we never really truly listen. And what happens when we don’t listen? We inevitably end up somewhere else. In the wrong arms, in the wrong career, in the wrong space living an inauthentic life. We spend years doing what we think is so right, yet ends up being so wrong.
Here’s a personal example, I enrolled in a specific field of study; however, the course credits I wanted to take did not apply to the program I entered. Back then, it didn’t occur to me that I enrolled in a program that wasn’t the right fit. What we choose usually comes down to appeasing other people. Most of us happen to be people pleasers, sacrificing what we want and need. Consumed with what others think and what others want your life to look like. The trouble with that is you have your own thoughts, beliefs, and your own life to live. Everyone’s head eventually hits their own pillow. In other words, no one can live someone else’s life, we are in our own story, the story we create. Sometimes we are fortunate enough to have someone come along to offer valuable advice.
THE SECRET TO A GREAT LIFE DEPENDS SOLELY ON YOU
A documentary on aging gracefully aired last year. Seniors in their nineties and some who were centenarians were interviewed. One woman was celebrating her 104th birthday. They asked her, “What’s the secret to a great life?” A hush fell across the room. Everyone listened with bated breath. The camera moved in and caught a sparkle which glinted in her blue eyes. At that moment, the question transported her to another place and time, and with a smile she returned with her answer, “Living a life of no regret.”
We have the opportunity to create a great story, a life we truly love. It’s all about you, and how you want to spend the rest of this gifted life.