Living Your Best Life

Living your best life has become a saying many people use to describe individuals they see living life to the fullest!  Whether it be for traveling the world, for enjoying a concert, or for even getting a promotion, “living your best life” is a phrase we say with praise to these people and ourselves.  I polled my followers on Instagram and asked them if they are living their best lives.  The majority of them – 70% – answered “no”.

But here’s the true mind game: did you know that at this very moment, you are indeed your best self and are living your best life?

It’s true.

Yes, we could all be doing better than we are now, but based off where are now we are where we should be – here.  And our best is how we are RIGHT now.

Am I Living My Best Life?

I absolutely am!  I’m living my best life unapologetically.

When I tell you the amount of joy and gratitude I feel each day is unreal –  I’m just happy to be here!

I started living my best life a few years back, sharing with you guys how I started via my post entitled “8 Cardinal Rules of Life“.  I won’t say I had an epiphany, but I will say I came to more of a realization that I wanted my life to be more meaningful and purposeful.  In addition to those, I implemented this one step and I completely changed my life.

Be Intentional

Being intentional simply means to having meaning behind what you do.  A lot of times we find ourselves in zombie mode, just doing things we don’t necessarily want to do just to fill the time.  We procrastinate.  We make plans with people we don’t want to hang out with not to seem “rude”.  We surf the internet because we’re “bored”.  These are what we call distractions.

The simplest approach is to have meaning behind what you do.

If it doesn’t mean anything to you, why are you doing it?

Ideal Day: #GOALS

You see someone you admire on social media, look at their life and think #GOALS, but guess what?  You can make your own.  Obviously you want to live your best life (a goal), so think of being intentional as a blueprint for a perfect day.  Sit down, write out how you would want your perfect day to go.

Alright, take a look at your list.  I’m going to go out on a limb here and say you’ve probably got some things like the following on your list: spending time with family, waking up with a clear heart/mind, eating breakfast, smiling more – priorities in life.

I am also going to say you probably left out activities such as: check social media, call my mother to complain about my life, spend money & eat out for lunch, etc. because those things are NOT are part of your ideal day.

By making a list, you can start to hold yourself accountable for your actions.  Think to yourself before you do something: will this help me create my ideal day?  Will this help me reach my goal of living my best life?

If not, steer clear of it.  If it will, go for it.  It’s all about being in charge of YOUR decisions and lessening the opportunity to say “I didn’t mean to do that”.  Do what you mean to do.

Be Present

Being intentional is all about being present in the moment.  Earlier, I mentioned you are living your best life right now.  You can’t live your best life tomorrow because it hasn’t happened yet.  Your past is gone – that’s old news.  The only way to live your best life is to go for it now!

Breathe

If you find it hard to be present refocus by breathing, a practice Yoga has taught me.  Intention is opposite of impulse, so if you just take a breather before you make a decision you can clear your mind and make decisions that coincide with your ideal day and your overall goals.

Practice Gratitude

When you practice gratitude, you acknowledge you are not running on auto drive and you have a purpose for being alive.  Even if you say “I’m just happy to be here” you are acknowledging your presence.

Grace

Remember you are NOT a perfect being, so you will make mistakes.  And that’s okay!  Give yourself grace.  Living your best life is not about living a perfect life, it’s about living fully and purposefully.

See how all of these things are interdependent?

Take the Simple Approach

None of this is complicated and living your best life is simple: live intentionally.  Without fear and boundaries, live each day like it’s your last and be thankful that you have today to be here because it could very well be another way.

How are you living your best life?