Life can move quickly, and it often takes us by surprise. We can often find ourselves dealing with it by getting into habitual processes, the rituals and routines that govern our life. This is good. Security comes in repetition, and so does safety. A secure family home will have a good routine that everyone follows, and of course free time to balance that out. But, with anyone, especially someone dealing with many responsibilities as we’re sure you do, it can sometimes be that these habits seem boring, and then our standards start slipping.
This means that we’re starting to lose focus of the everyday nature of our lives, and the beauty that can be found there despite having to do a few activities a few times a week. For that reason, it might be that holding yourself to a higher standard could be a fun new activity to keep yourself reminded as to why you chose this life in the first place.
We hope the following advice can help you:
Start With Everyday Habits
Lao Tzu once gave the incredibly popular quote: ‘Watch your thoughts. They become words. Watch your words. They become deeds. Watch your deeds. They become habits. Watch your habits. They become character. Character is everything.’ Put simply, you could say, ‘focus on the everyday.’ It’s not often worthwhile making grand and heavy sweeping changes in your life unless absolutely, absolutely necessary, because it’s very easy to take things too far and you might end up going further than you had originally intended.
But it is possible to start with everyday habits. Driving that little bit safer, deciding to fully stick to that 6.00am wake-up time instead of having to rush to work everyday, and giving yourself just a little more time to experience the morning by walking to work can slowly help transform you into someone with aforementioned character.
Know When To Ask For Help
Sometimes, being a better person isn’t in what we do, but in how honest we are with ourselves. It can be that if we refuse help that we sorely need, we end up becoming less and less together and that can show in our actions and behaviors. To that end, it’s very important to know when to ask for help, and how you might even go about that in the first place. Thankfully you can do this. It might be a lawyer can help with your car accident, that you visit HR to complain about that colleague you’ve needed to avoid, or perhaps you need to deal with acute PTSD you experienced from a bad experience years ago.
Open Your Heart
Often, in the need to fulfil our daily duties, in the need to defend ourselves and our families, and in the ability to stay strong, we can close off our hearts. It might be that opening your mind and emotions to being more empathetic, in helping others, and in general trying harder to relate to other people and their experiences is what you need to avoid becoming cynical, as this can often happen with age.
With these tips, you’re sure to hold yourself to a higher standard.