Nothing beats a shift in attitude

I don't want to come out and say what has changed me. It is deep and personal and almost irrelevant because it was not just one specific event but a build-up over time of thoughts and feelings. It changed me massively in a way that is not necessarily so plain to see. I mean I still have the same passion for music that I did before and outside of expanding to new hobbies I haven't changed too much or have I? One certainty with people is that like of the seasons they will change. Everyone does all the time. So just like all things, I have changed and although we could look back to a specific date it's still been forward and backwards. Sometimes habits just die hard. It's not something I should chastize myself for. After all sometimes to move forward we have to take a few steps back. These are three key points I have learned and embraced.

No fear.

Don't fear, fear. Everyone will feel fear especially when trying to break out of the person they were and when they try to be different. Of course, you can't get rid of fear. It will always exist in you, but you have to embrace it because let's face it a lot of times fear isn't real. Of course, you could be getting chased by a grizzly bear wielding a chainsaw while reading this but let's assume you're not. In reality, our biggest fears are failures and other peoples opinions. It's the if's and but's that keeps us up at night not the impending doom that our sun will eventually explode. The fear that most people create for themselves is purely fiction and you can break free from that. Even if fear was created from our primal instinct many centuries ago there is not the ongoing threat to our lives that there once was. Feel the fear but don't let it control you.

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yourself

I hate the term 'improve yourself' because that implies that there is something wrong with you. That you need to get some sort of level as a human being. The only action you can take is to live and to learn. Expanding and learning are what you want to do. Expose yourself to new idea's and concepts and reflect. The way I see it is you have a choice of what you spend your time on. If you want to have more positive reactions then you need to make sure you spend time on things that matter.

forgiving yourself

Don't be too hard on yourself. After all, we are on a ball of floating rock in space. Sometimes overthinking and being too hard on yourself is just unfair. Even if you do make mistakes you've got to learn from them and if you realised it was a mistake, chances are that you will. No one is perfect and no one will ever be. The people you look up to and the people around aren't perfect no matter how much they pretend to be. Everyone you've ever known has struggled or is struggling. Just because they don't talk about it doesn't mean it's not true. There does not have to be meaning in everything and sometimes staying alive is literally the key fundamentally to living. Whatever your goals are; eating and sleeping are essential. There is nothing else we have to do. Sure, we have to go to work and we have to do this and we have to do that. Ultimately though we just have to stay breathing. No matter our goals or dreams. We have to stay alive. Being alive is hope and having hope is having dreams and without dreams, we don't have much but with them we have everything. So never give up.

Following all three points has changed my attitude and outlook. I hope you will find some comfort in these words.

Thanks for reading, Charlie.