There are two types of people in this world: those who believe that they can live the life they want by doing what they are most passionate about and those who don’t.
You are going to spend more than 90,000 hours at your job over the course of your lifetime, so choosing a career is extremely important. Chasing a paycheck, working a prestigious job just to impress people, or accepting an unfulfilling job for fear of not finding something better are all common choices.
But that doesn’t have to be you.
For those unfortunate individuals who believe that life is supposed to be difficult and that work is supposed to be just work, life will be a grind.
Waking up each day feeling like you have to go to work, punch a clock, plod through yet another unfulfilling day, and go home tired and feeling listless, is a terrible way to live.
Unfortunately, millions of people do just that. I personally know dozens of people who honestly think that we all just need to suck it up, do what we can to pay the bills, and go on with life.
If our jobs happen to make us miserable, suck it up. If we have a tyrannical boss, too bad. Suck it up.
How incredibly sad it is to live this way.
Change Your Attitude
Everything that happens in your life is subject to interpretation. In other words, it’s 100% how we respond when something happens.
If you get fired, you can cry, whine, or be belligerent. Or you can choose to look at it as an opportunity to try something different or pursue your passions.
Someday, take a good, hard look at your life. What do you truly want to accomplish? How many good, quality years do you have left?
Life is incredibly short and wasting it doing things you find unfulfilling is a complete waste of your time. There is absolutely no reason you cannot have it all. Millions of people are working in jobs/businesses they love.
Millions of people are sharing their life with the love of their life. Millions of people wake up happy each day and grateful for another chance to do great things with their day.
And so can you!
So here are 8 reasons that you can and should live the life you want:
1. Because you will be dead before you know it.
If you’re 40, think about how fast the last 20 years have gone by. In another 20, you will be a senior citizen. Your quality of life may be nowhere near what it is now. Take enjoyment in the fact that you can be active, are mobile, and have few or no physical limits. How many people lying on their deathbeds wish they could have their last 20 years back? Don’t be that person.
2. Your work does not define you.
Getting trapped in a high paying yet unrewarding job is a fast track to misery. You owe it to yourself to do something you love. Maybe you have a passion for tree houses.
Sure you can build tree houses as a hobby, but what if that is your passion? Why not become THE go to person for tree house design and construction? You can. Passion is contagious and you can literally earn a living doing virtually anything that truly excites you.
3. You are living in a free society.
If you aren’t then you probably aren’t reading this! You have the ability to go anywhere at any time. You can quit your job, find a new one doing anything you choose, and make as much money as you want. You are bound by nothing. Get out there and experience life. Try new things and have fun!
4. Focus on your relationships.
The source of our happiness as social beings comes directly from our relationships with others. Remember that the next time your mother calls. Take a few minutes to actually talk to her. Tell her you love her.
Reconnect with your old high school friends. And not just on Facebook! Call them and meet in person. Introduce yourself to a stranger. Make new acquaintances. You can’t have too many friends in this world.
5. Focus on finding happiness.
Everyone defines his or her happiness differently. Ask yourself what inspires you. What gets your heart pumping when you talk about it? What are you excellent at? When do you feel most at peace?
When you can honestly answer these things, go do them!
6. Live your life for you, not for others.
Fear of criticism is at the top of the list of fears for most people. People are deathly afraid of looking bad, being viewed as abnormal, or being different. This is why we do things to please others in spite of our true feelings, wants, or desires.
To break this habit, try challenging yourself by doing something embarrassing. It sounds corny, but it does work. Skip down the aisle in the grocery store. Start singing in line at a restaurant. You will feel foolish and draw stares, but so what? Really, so what?
When we stop caring so much about what others think about us, our lives improve dramatically.
7. Take a break.
Sure, two week vacations are great, but can you honestly say that it’s enough to clear your head, remove all of life’s stresses, and recharge your battery? Of course not! Most of us take two weeks just to begin relaxing! Then it’s back to the grind!
Take a break means exactly that. Take a walk at work (or a few). Take a sick day when you’re not sick. Find time to unwind. It can be done and will improve your mindset and increase your production at work. Win-win!
8. Choose new habits.
Our habits shape our lives. And most of us have many self-limiting ones. Start assessing your negative habits that are holding you back from living a better life. Do some research, read books, take a class.
When you eliminate bad habits, you can start creating new, better ones. You’ll be amazed at your level of happiness when you are doing productive and positive things each day.
Remember, It’s YOUR Life!
Remembering that your life will be over before you know it is a great motivator to search for happiness. Most will never think about their own mortality, but it can force you to take action if you do.
You can have it all if you so choose. So choose wisely!
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Steve Roy is the owner of EndingTheGrind.com, a blog about escaping the daily grind of a 9 to 5 job, building an online business, and living your passions.