When people grow old, they often look back at how they chose to spend their life in every phase of it. It isn’t a surprise that most of them have regrets for walking in the opposite direction of their dreams on multiple occasions. 

I’ve done that many times in my life. I’m sure you must have too. When we find something that interests us, be it a hobby, a potential career path or even something as simple as going to a party, our initial instinct is to look outward instead of inward. We focus on what people will think of us and what will happen if the outcome is not as desired. This unsaid desire for acceptance makes us do things we may not actually want to do if all these external forces are removed from our lives. 

It is totally okay to be like that sometimes since we are social beings, and wanting to be accepted by the community is something that we all desire. But in my personal experience, life feels lighter and much more enjoyable when we don’t let things control us. How many times have you shown up to an office party when all you needed was a break from all the busyness and chaos? How many times did you let an opportunity pass because you were afraid that people might not like what you have to offer? How many things that you enjoyed doing did you let go of because they didn’t make it to the list of productivity standards set by society?

My biggest hack to turn this around is to build awareness, which I believe is a gift for all of us. It will not change your life in an instant by turning you into someone who does not forget to live their life no matter the pressure at work, make time for the little things that give them comfort and work towards building a life that fulfils them. But it certainly puts you on a path that leads you to this version of yourself. 

When I think of the thousand choices I have to make in a day, I remind myself to look inward for 90% of those.

“Does this make me happy?”

“Am I ready to push myself out of my comfort zone?”

“Did I set some time aside for a 30-minute walk that I really enjoy doing every day?”

“Am I working hard (or slowing down) when I need to?”

These are some questions I ask myself multiple times during the day simply because they define who I am and how I live my life. 

If you haven’t already, this week, I encourage you to look inward. Spend some time and get to know yourself better. Find out what makes you YOU.

When you start enjoying getting to know yourself, there’s no going back! 

See you next week! :)