Friday Five - May 20

Living Your Life

This week I have been reflecting on my life as several of my friends and family are suffering from some health issues. These things have made me reflect on what I have been doing and what I should be doing. So this week are five questions I have asked myself to determine my focus.

1. Am I living according to my values? Many times people are not always aware of what their values are. What are your values? If you aren't sure of your values, what are your priorities? Looking at how you are living your life, are you matching your beliefs? Check out the Blog post from January 30th - on how balance is your life for help assessing your life.

2. What do I want to accomplish? What do I want to be remembered for? I am a goal focused individual. I do well when I can focus on a goal, and tend to flounder when I don't. But goals are often related to self improvement. What do I want to be remembered for? For me this is often how I consider my volunteer activities. Volunteering is a great way to leave a mark on the world.

3. Am I doing the best that I can? Some days I am tired, and I do not do my best. But what would it take to do my best? What tools do I need to put in place so that I can be more productive? For me, I need to plan. Take a few minutes at the end of each day to plan out the next. When I am over tired I tend to skip this steps which often results in a snowball effect.

4. Am I preparing for the future? This goes hand in hand with number 3. I need to plan. But where number 3 is preparing for my best, this is a slightly different focus. What do I need to have in place to make it happen? For example I am planning to make jam in the morning, so besides having a recipe (a plan as in #3), I also need the ingredients and the equipment, that is what this step is talking about. So what do you need to have to be prepared? What do you need to keep things moving forward? Money? Security? Support network? Resources?

5. Last question, are you happy? Many times when you are working toward goals, toward the illusion of having it all, it is easy to get caught up in the moment, and thinking about what it takes to make you happy. So are you happy? If not, why? It is a tough question. Many times people think that if you will become happy if you are successful. But reality is if you are happy, you are successful.

A lot of deep thoughts this week. If you need to discuss any of these questions, a life coach can help. Feel free to reach out.