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Making life harder than it needs to be is silly! But that’s what a lot of us do.
Maybe we do it because it makes us feel more in control…or because we want everything to be perfect. Whatever the reason, here are four ways people make life way harder than it has to be.
Do you have unrealistic goals in life?
Who sets our goals? Well, we do!
We control our expectations and goals.
Setting unrealistic or unachievable goals makes life harder.
Sometimes we set unrealistic goals when trying to escape a painful situation, or when we get really excited about something!
Life gets a little bit easier when we take time to count our blessings and live each day from a place of gratitude.
Gratitude breeds contentment, and it helps us to enjoy the journey, too.
Being grateful and content, while intentionally working to improve your life through small, daily actions, creates a much different quality of life than being worried and stressed out all of the time, trying to escape a situation.
Living with a sense of peace makes life easier. Living with sense of panic makes it harder.
Counting your blessings and taking consistent action towards reaching your goals makes life easier. Period.
Do you compare yourself with others?
Social media can be a blessing or a curse. It quickly becomes toxic when we compare ourselves to others.
Keep in mind that people on social media rarely glorify their failures.
Usually, when someone posts something on Facebook or Instagram, it’s their best moments.
Why would we ever compare ourselves to that? It makes no sense, plus it makes life so much more difficult.
Someone may look glamorous in a photo they posted, but what does their life look like off camera?
Strive to become YOUR best; live your life, not someone else’s. There will always be someone richer, smarter, and better looking (remember beauty is in the eyes of the beholder).
The ONLY person you should compare yourself to is your former self.
Look at how far you’ve come, how much you’ve improved, and who you are now.
Are you scared to take risks?
Comfort zones. We all have them…and we like staying in them. We tend to be risk-averse; it’s our nature.
But, do you ever feel stuck, trapped, or in a self-made prison?
Maybe taking a few well-calculated risks is just what the doctor ordered.
We need to will ourselves to step beyond our comfort zones because that’s where we learn and grow, and where life becomes less monotonous and more exciting.
What kind of risks are we talking about?
Are we talking about throwing caution to the wind and finding a mountain to climb and jump off? Maybe. But probably not, especially if it’s your first mountain and first-ever base jump.
There are other risks, though. Scarier ones. Sometimes to make our lives better we have to risk being rejected by people, or risk losing money by making calculated investments. Or, it could be starting over in a new place where no one knows you, but you do it anyway because you need a fresh start.
Are you taking risks or playing it safe?
Set one or two simple short-term goals to improve some part of your life. Once you overcome that challenge, set higher goals; take more risks.
We make life harder when we insist on living within the safety of our comfort zones.
Do you attribute hostile intentions?
When someone does something that hurts you, do you believe it’s because they intended to?
Most people don’t intend to harm you intentionally.
We make life more difficult when we assign bad intentions to people’s actions towards us.
Do you think that your partner is ignoring you? Think of it this way: Maybe they’re just tired or preoccupied with something at work. Remind yourself that your partner would never do anything intentionally to hurt you.
The person who cut you off in traffic could be out of work and is rushing to a job interview – he or she didn’t do it to make you mad.
Life gets really hard when we take things personally all the time. The world isn’t out to get us. Sometimes things happen out of coincidence.
Attributinng hostile intent will only make you feel angry, hurt, or sad.
Now let’s summarize what we discussed: Learn to worry less about others’ intentions towards you; they’re dealing with their own stuff and aren’t being malicious.
Learn to take intelligent risks, take chances, and set realistic goals. Life won’t get better until we change our habits. Want a fulflling life? Step out of your comfort zone.
And, lastly, please don’t ever compare yourself to anyone else; it’ll make you feel miserable. Be grateful for your blessings, and have a vision for a better life.
Image by Elias Sch. from Pixabay
