The things that matter in life are not things

How do you want people to remember you?

It is an interesting exercise to consider the personal legacy we will leave to our family, friends, and the wider community. It allows us to reflect on what really matters in the here and now.

We can choose to accumulate achievements we measure as levels of success, or we can pay attention to what can’t be measured but matters most.

What matters most to you?

One way to explore this is to identify your roles in life, your governing values, and your daily habits. Roles are our evolving relationships and responsibilities. Our values are what’s important to us; they influence our life decisions. Habits can be defined as the attitudes and actions that support or distract from our roles and values. By closely observing daily priorities, we can recognise if any habits require an ‘attitude adjustment.’

 When you pay attention to how you want your life to matter, there are universal principles to observe;

1) Relationships - who do you want to feel connected to?

2) Purpose - what energises you into action?

3) Growth - where do you want personal expansion in your life?

4) Joy - when do you experience feeling truly alive?

5) Contribution - how can you give back to others and/or to the world?

We cannot acquire success in relationships, purpose, growth, joy, or contribution as trophies that sit dormant and gather dust. They are ‘life in action.’

An exercise for my clients is: “Imagine living your best life.”  The questions to consider are: What does your ideal day look like? What are you doing? What relationships/activities are important to you? What changes have you made to achieve living this life? This last question translates imagination into reality and identifies what matters most for us, today and in the future. But disciplined personal growth is required to achieve this. We all have conditioned beliefs which shape our life and behaviour, both positively and negatively. When we examine our beliefs, we can pay attention to changing thoughts and perceptions that hinder us from being the best version of ourselves.

Living our best life is acknowledging what matters most. Perhaps it is connecting with others, pursuing personal interests, or creating wealth to benefit others. 

Our lives are shaped by what we pay attention to. Trish