How Much Do You Get Out Of Your Life?

Wow – what a confronting question. I came across the following saying the other day that got me thinking.

“People do not live nowadays.

They get about 10 percent out of life.”

Isadora Duncan

How much do you get out of life? I understand there are things we have to do in life that we don’t always love, but how much of your life is made up of that?

This may be one of those questions that is just too hard to answer. So let’s flip the question. How much of your life do you love? What parts of it? We can break life into some categories and start there. Feel free to design your own categories; however, some suggestions to get you going include:

• Health
• Fitness
• Business / Career
• Community
• Personal Growth
• Relaxation
• Romance / Significant other
• Spiritual

I am hoping that this exercise makes you feel good about your life and not sad and pathetic. However, if you are feeling a bit exhausted by the evaluation, the benefit is it may motivate you to change.

Remember, it is the small things in life that bring us most of our happiness. This comes from the 80/20 rule or Pareto’s Principle. It is the small things that bring us joy and happiness. It can be a kiss from a child, a catch up with a friend, a bush walk on the weekend with the family. It is often the really small little things that we love. Those things we do that bring a smile to our face every time we think about it.

If you are finding that you do need to make some changes to your life then pick an area. For example, relaxation – and think about what you do that relaxes you. It may be spending time reading, going for a walk, having a bath, getting a massage, gardening (I know for some it is a wonderfully relaxing thing to do). Then plan that into your week. It can happen. You just have to make it happen.

Aristotle said:

"Happiness is the meaning

and the purpose of life,

the whole aim and end

of human existence.“

So what do you have to do to make happiness a key in your life? What do you need to do to get more from your life? Think about tomorrow. What small changes can you make to have a better life? Why a better life? Because this is it! This is the life you have. Where you are today in your life is about the decisions you have made and the actions you have taken.

When I first heard that, I didn’t agree; however, upon reflection I realised I did agree I just didn’t want to acknowledge that it was true. The best part is thought once you get over yourself and realise that where you are in life now is really based on the decisions you have made and the actions you have taken, then the bonus is, all you have to do is make different decisions and take different actions!

Too simple? Not really. We just have to take action so that we are living life, a wonderful, magnificent life, worth living, worth bragging and boasting about and worth every minute of it. Let’s aim to get way more out of our life than 10%. What’s your target?