Living life authentically is so important to being happy and content with who you are. You have the opportunity in life to create a path that is true to yourself and your visions and values. There are ten steps that I have found that can help you realize an authentic life.
Be true to yourself - Liberate yourself from the internal generated pressure to so the things we should do and instead focus on the things that is priorities because we value them
Evaluate Change - Change can be scary and it is in our natural to resist change. When we approach change with fear and what we will lose we can justify and rationalize our current behavior to avoid changing. We naturally want the place that was comfortable and familiar. When we are looking at change in our lives we need to remember what we stand to gain, what will be lost it we remain in the current state.
Choose a career path that fits your personal values and goals - Reflecting and choosing a career path that aligns with your values and goals creates a foundation for happiness and effectiveness. This does require thinking about these goals and could mean realigning your life to be in a career that is aligned with your values and goals. Change is good if it takes you on the path to contentment.
Honor yourself for who you are strengths and weakness alike - Your strengths and weakness make up who you are as a person. Being aware of these and appreciating ourselves for these is important to finding your real self. If you love, honor and tolerate yourself, you will be more tolerant of others. You will be able to handle stress easier and will be able to resolve problems better. Honoring yourself means you do not need to struggle for others approval. When you let go of the shoulds and accept who you are you gain control of your life.
Seek Progress, Not Perfection - How you conduct yourself on the journey of life is truly your decision. It is not defined only by your success but also by your failures. Our journey to learn and develop must include both wins and losses', learning is about making mistakes and forgiving ourselves for these mistakes, learning from them and moving towards our goals. When we were toddlers we fell many times before mastering the art of walking. Give yourself a break and realize that you are not perfect.
Welcome Mistakes and Failures as Opportunities - Failure is important in in giving us data. We can learn from what went wrong, move on and prevent it from happening again. This does take looking back and evaluating failures to see what the lesson learned was and then looking for solutions for preventing this in the future. The important part about mistakes and failures is that we need to look, learn and then move one and forgive ourselves for not being perfect.
Live Everyday consistent with your values and visions - None us know what will happen to us tomorrow so it is important to live every day in a life that reflects our values and visions. Living life in your terms can create an environment that makes life a wonderful place to be. This could mean that you have put off traveling for years and it has been your vision to travel. Now is the time to start making that happen. You may want to go back to school the choice to do this is your but today is as good a day as any to start the process.
Be Open to Spontaneity and unforeseen opportunity - Trying to control every aspect of your life can get exhausting. Living your life aligned with your visions and values does not mean that every move will be planned out precisely but that you are living life based on these and are flexible in creating the future. Spontaneity can give you a great sense of freedom and joy. If your plans are too rigid it can create unnecessary pressures and stress, preventing you from looking at unforeseen opportunities. It's important to have unstructured time and preserve some freedoms in your life. Uncertainty may feel uncomfortable but can be the gateway to growth and development.
Have a Support System - Your relationship should be ones that support you as a person. Creating a circle of people that accept you and love you for who you are is important to growth. If you do not have this support system find one or two. Coaching can help to keep you on track to realize your goals and aspirations. The key is to have people that support you and can help you see the clear picture for you. A support system encourages, challenges and supports you to make decisions that are right for you.
Realize You Always Have A Choice - It is important to take responsibility for yourself and recognize that you are always making choices, even when you tell yourself you are being pressured or forced by outside influences. Make deliberate choices, act on the basis of judgment rather than habit or assumption.
The choice is yours to live your life by others visions and values or chose a life that is authentic to you. We are all individuals and with this come the choice to live according to what will create the environment for happiness for us as individuals. This comes from understanding and marching to our own drummer. The choice is yours.
Susan Hagen is a Transformational Coach that teaches these and other techniques to reach your goals in life. Connect through E Mind Design to find out more about transforming your life http://www.eminddesign.com/#!transformational-coaching/c18jm
