5 ways to better your life.

1. Stop comparing yourself to others

One of the easiest ways to get down is to compare ourselves to others, whether it is in our professional lives, economical status or intellectual properties whatever it is it’s not worth your energy. You are unique and have plenty of reasons to admire yourself, if you are attempting to better yourself every day then each day you will be closer to becoming the best version of you, and perfection by definition is “the action or process of improving something until it is faultless or as faultless as possible.” you don’t have to be perfect in the eyes of everyone just be the best you that you can be and you might just inspire others to love themselves the same.

What makes people exceptional is the fact that we are our own person, although influenced by others, we have traits and interests that make us who we are and I feel that all of those niches should be respected and adored, because it is what gives us our quirks. Give yourself some credit for being you, it never takes too long to find someone who appreciates your true self. Pretending to be something we aren’t is bound to get exhausting, spend that energy embracing the things that make you unique and I promise people will love and respect you for that.

2. Know your strengths and weaknesses

When I was younger, I went through anger management and tackled one of my biggest weaknesses early on in life and in doing so I was able to grow past it and evolve as a person as a result. If I had lived my life without recognizing that as a weakness I would probably still be fuming over the small things, if it helps to write out a list of pros and cons of all the things you think could use some work and things that you do well try it out. Don’t be too critical as I can guarantee you have plenty of character traits and areas of expertise that would be easily commendable. Whether it’s being overly emotional or having anger issues, whatever those weaknesses are, you can’t solve a problem if you are unaware of the issue.

Don’t be too critical as I can guarantee you have plenty of character traits and areas of expertise that would be easily commendable. Embrace those strengths, instead of assuming that you are less than because others don’t appreciate your strengths, find those that do and most importantly. Learn to appreciate it for yourself, our weaknesses do not define us they are temporary and with hard work can be left in the past. It’s our strengths that require nourishment, don’t feed those weaknesses and self doubt, leave those behind do what you do best and success will find you.

3. Always look forward

Although sometimes dwelling on the past can no doubt be beneficial to the future, it is much better to extract the lesson, and apply it and move on. The great thing is not focusing on things you cannot change. But applying your energy to the things you can; the future, It is almost always easier said than done to not get caught up in past experiences hell I know how trauma works and sometimes it’s impossible to not think about the past. But I can confidently tell you that although those memories may bring important lessons the feelings that come along with them aren’t worth getting lost in. Keep in mind that it is almost impossible to move forward when your feet are stuck in the mud.

I am not saying it is an overnight transition to simply achieving an amnesia level of forgetting the past, I’m saying cherish the good memories and utilize and discard those that aren’t. Your future is much brighter when you are able to invest all of your energy in it, whatever your aspiration the positives of moving on from your past are astronomical. Also, I am a firm believer that whatever we go through in life makes us who we are, some of these experiences positive or negative we owe gratitude for reinforcing our character and making us stronger people as a result.

4. Find a counterbalance between needs versus wants

It is too easy to misinterpret our desires and necessitates, although some are one in the same such as cars for travel and convenience, computers for access to information and a source for entertainment or phones for socializing or overall convenience. Some we spend far too much time wanting such as material items, like jewelry and the latest and greatest technology. Teaching yourself to be grateful for what you do have is one of the most freeing feelings, although it doesn’t serve our economic based society, it will serve your soul and offer peace of mind in ways you can’t begin to imagine. Although whatever makes you happy can be seen as a necessity, spending beyond your means in search of a feeling of contentment is self-destructive.

It is almost always better to invest your money and time in improving yourself, through vacations or enjoying your surroundings. Great memories will last forever, but a brand new phone or tv will be outdated in a few years. Spend on things with longevity such as indulging in your hobbies and interests, or develop some new skills in the future you will appreciate you. And after all, we are not living for the approval of others instead we should live to show ourselves that we are capable of doing things others may say is impossible. Live for yourself and respect will follow, selflessness is key in life, but in success sometimes devoting some time and energy to yourself isn’t selfish at all.

5. Do your part in spreading love instead of investing in hate

In life, it is almost too easy to hate sometimes it’s an uncontrollable response to something, but the truth of the matter is it’s something you can live without. Hating takes so much energy and is draining in so many ways and almost always you spend so much time radiating this anger filled energy without affecting the issue, spend your time focusing on the things that you love whatever it may be whether it’s a pet or your family or interest derived from passion, focus on that as when you spread your love out to the universe and the universe will send it back in one form or another.

I have been pessimistic in the worst ways at several points in my life, but through learning and experiencing the feeling of outward and inward love and how much that benefits me vs. The stress and anger that comes from being mad over things I can’t change. Love is such a broad spectrum, but the feeling itself is always the same make someone’s day, with a joke or an uplifting quote or help them out when they need help, you will always feel better knowing you spent your energy assisting others in some capacity then knowing you wasted your valuable and limited time exuding hatred. In this world, there is enough negativity and is so in the words of Mahatma Gandhi “Be the change you want to see in the world.”