In life, we’re constantly faced with a barrage of events, people, and other outside influences that try to mold us into what they want us to be. Some of these moments are there to define us; while others exist to refine us into being something more.
The plans we make rarely include these unexpected moments. We plan from a place of selfish optimism and naive thinking. Planning isn’t a bad thing. It’s when we fail to take a step outside of our bubble do we run into the problems we may unexpectedly face.
A shortsighted life
We may be so accustomed to a set routine and false safety that we forget how much more to life that there is waiting to be discovered.
Some of us only see the negative in things, and who can blame them really? We’ve reached a point in society where personal gain overshadows the importance of the individual humanities of others.
For others, they may be so used to fighting battles on their own that they fail to see their our own brokenness and even more the people around them that want to help them to truly heal.
We spend our time wrapped in these mazes of thought and feelings, run from one “guru” to the next. Neglecting to see that these things we may view as flaws are actually the things that make us unique.
Use the pain, disappointments, broken hearts and every moment that made you bleed emotionally and let it tell a story of how you turned that into something better.
Focus less on the negativity of the experience and more on how you can use that experience to help someone else.
The evolving definition
The moments that define us are usually dressed in difficult decisions, hard work and standing for what’s right.
They aren’t hanging out on a calendar somewhere. They happen based on the choices we make.
We can’t pick and choose when these moments will always happen but we can prepare for them. Consistency in action and the determination to succeed by doing what’s right are the most beneficial things we can do in order to grow and truly be great as an individual.
We can with go with the flow or stand as an example of a life that aims higher than mediocrity and selfish gain.
The path upward isn’t easy and with nothing promised to us. Why spend life playing someone else’s game?
Given the fact that the next moment isn’t promised to any of us, the focus of life shouldn’t be living to work but instead working to live.
A shift in focus
If five percent of the energy spent on watching tv, gossiping, backbiting or making excuses on why you can’t accomplish something great was diverted into creating more good, nurturing better company cultures or improving upon who we are as individuals, imagine how much more we would be productive in actually accomplishing.
The impact of shifting ones outlook upon things of meaning and substance over personal gain and material possessions is one that resonates into every fiber of who we are. It changes us to strive towards being better, it helps us to slow down and really pay attention to who we are and what our purpose in life actually is.
Life is a journey up the side of a mountain, an intense roller coaster, and a million other things mixed into one robust experience.
Why spend it sitting on the sidelines waiting for your moment to come?
Your moment may be today but you’ll never know if you don’t get up and focus on truly living.
