Stop Seeking and Start Finding: Create a Near-Perfect Life

I agree: I hate slowing down. When I finally let go of myself - being alone with my thoughts, in danger and open to the world - I was scared.

I have another confession: There was a time in my life when I was faced with a painful and frightening situation. It broke me. The only way I knew how to deal with my broken condition was to avoid my problems.

Simply put: If times were tough, I would run.

I changed schools, moved to different cities, traveled to different countries, and found comfort in running, a sport that required constant movement. I began to search for happiness: people, a place, and a situation that would help me find "perfect health."

I was a hunter who kept looking for happiness and different ways of being a "better person." I was looking for a new life that would be as “perfect” as the lives I saw in college institutions, TV shows and Facebook feed.

I believed that my old life and my old personality were not good enough, so I had to create a new life that would allow me to start over.

I thought about getting a Masters in world health, joining a rock band, writing a bestseller, running marathons, doing music in West Africa, hiking, and learning to build lean-to's.

I was convinced that achieving any of these things would make me happy, make me feel good, and make me live again.

A few years passed, and little by little I began to see that no matter where I went, what I wanted, and the circumstances I was in, I was still the same person inside.

It was then that I realized that if I wanted to be happy, I would first have to realize that perfect health did not exist, and the acceptance of my past and my imperfections were what created life at hand.

Most importantly, I had to recover, which meant I had to stop looking for the flu.

We should all follow what we want; we must be driven to pursue our dreams, embrace new challenges, and continue to make new sacrifices. But searching too often means deliberately seeking something that is not always intended, or simply fleeing from something that cannot really escape.

By seeing the tunnel and setting goals - finding a “perfect” job, finding the “perfect partner,” or making a group of “perfect” friends — you can not miss out on the vague realities that aim to fill your life.

If you are in the process of quitting, start discovering, and creating a life when you are wholehearted, fulfilled, and accepting, consider the following tips:

Accept who you are.

Know that your personality, your emotions, your outlook, and your attitude will follow you everywhere, no matter what your circumstances may be. Getting to know the good and the bad person is the first step toward accepting new challenges and allowing a new experience for you.

Give yourself options.

You may be looking for one thing - a certain job, a house in some part of the world, or a certain honor or wealth. But if one of your dreams doesn't come true, it probably means that a bigger and better dream is waiting for you. Don't give up, and let it open.

Be in danger.

Invite fear, uncertainty, and imperfection into your life. Once you have fully opened up the universe, it will allow you to see the number of options you can think of, and allow you to try new things to help create a closer life.

Meditate.

Use meditation as a way to have nothing out of your current personality. This helps you slow down and stop looking, knowing your true self and what you feel, what you want, and what you need.

Try again.

Things don't fall into place right away. There will be ten difficulties before one festival. Do not give up. Be patient.

Don't stand together.

None of these tips mean you have to stop walking completely and wait for life to work on its own. Instead, it is about finding the balance between learning what you want and inviting new opportunities, while realizing that your reaction to life is in your hands.

After nearly ten years of searching, I found my life so close to New York City, a place I had sworn I would never go. I found a place to live with my old friend, and we renewed our friendship about five years ago. I have found a support system for friends and family who are always ready for me, and one company of hundreds can apply to hire me.

My time in New York has helped me to find a spirit of joy that has always been within me - a spirit that once was very tired because of my constant desire to spread its light.

I'm still not good at slowing down. I am very happy when I travel, when I always try to reach that next level. But I also try to slow down and breathe - to stop looking for the “better” and start to find myself, allowing my closest life to meet me in the middle.