If you’re being honest, there’s a good chance you want something more in your life.
Not that you want more physical “stuff” or a bigger house just to show off to the neighbors…I think you’re wise enough to know that that’s a fleeting feeling anyway.
No, you want something deeper, fuller, more true to your soul. You want the kind of life that you feel completely, authentically you in.
You want the life where you can contribute to something bigger than yourself but not feel like you have to sell your soul to the devil to do your thing.
You want to know the feeling of good hard work, and for cryin’ out loud – can you get a little rest along the way? Not just numbed by distractions, but like some REAL, soul-rest?
You know you want that kind of life, but you also know that it can feel impossible to attain. It feels like “that” kind of life is only reserved for other people. You know, the ones who have better connections or more advanced degrees or… dare I say it… no little ones running around the house.
Let me be the friend in your corner reminding you of the truth: those are lies.
Your ideal life is NOT reserved for someone else; heck, it’s YOUR ideal life.
Your degrees don’t make you who you are, so give that idea up right now. I can think of a lot of people with more degrees than we can even pronounce, and they still aren’t living the life they really want.
And while healthy relationships are vital to the human soul, having “connections” just for the sake of connections isn’t where it’s at either. I’ve seen it more times than I care to count and it makes me nauseous: people using people just to get what they want. Gross.
Is that the life you want? I’d venture to say that it’s not. Because it’s not what makes you feel whole, fully you. Sure, it might stroke an ego, but it doesn’t make a person truly happy.
There is no overnight fix to aligning your life with what you really want it to be. BUT, there are things you can do RIGHT NOW to start setting things on course for becoming that person, living that life, fully & freely….
Here’s the catch though:
Living the life you truly want to live requires you to do some hard things.
It’s going to require you setting up some boundaries (for others AND yourself).
It’s going to require you being honest with yourself about what’s working & what’s not.
It’s going to require you to take some risks, make some moves, ….
It’s going to require you to get comfortable with being uncomfortable.
Before you walk away from this, do me yourself a favor and answer this honestly:
What happens if I don’t try?
Well, most likely, you’ll hit a point in your future when you’ll wish you would have…
Today is the day.
Look back over your life. Look at ALL the hard things you’ve been through.
From the time you were little – that thing your family went through –
To the time in high school when you felt alone and unseen even when you were in a sea of hundreds of other people-
To now, today, this thing that you’re enduring – and you’re trying to do it with such grit & grace….
Remind yourself of this truth: YOU CAN DO HARD THINGS.
You can.
So, when the lies and doubts want to drown out the possibilities of you living the life you truly want to live, speak truth over that. Drown the doubt with truth.
And make a move.
Take one step in the direction of your ideal life.
Maybe that one step is:
-getting up a little earlier to move your bones and take care of your body
-not allowing someone to speak disrespectfully to you anymore
-not allowing yourself to entertain the ideas of doubt and fear that keep crippling you
-making a playlist of songs that invigorate your spirit
-deciding you’re going to make just ONE of your daily meals be awesome-healthy (& that doesn’t mean it has to taste like cardboard)…
-not watching shows that fill your mind with garbage (btw, is The Bachelor still on? )
Let me just say this –
I have never regretted when I’ve done the necessary hard things that I knew would help shape me and my life into what I truly wanted it to be. Never.
It starts with being honest with yourself.
What is ONE thing you can try that will set your life a little better in the direction you want it to go?
Hey, it’s your life. You get to decide. You can stay the course you’re on right now – keep doing what you’re doing & stay in this perpetual place of wishing & regret (how’s that working out?)
OR
You can alter the course in your favor… even just a little bit… and see what happens.
You are worth going after your dreams.
You, my friend – you can do hard things.