There is something so inspiring in these words, this call to action for us all – live life to the fullest!
Who wouldn’t want to live life to the fullest? It seems so evident like a priori good. All our commercials, movies, and songs portray this idea at every turn. Pick any pop song, and you will find it is about painting the town red and going to the very extreme as you light up the way.
After all, when we are at the end of this journey called life, we don’t really want to regret the chances we didn’t take, right? We are made to believe that there is nothing sadder than wasted potential. What could be sadder than having wasted our days watching TV or lounging in our homes? Shouldn’t we have been trekking the highest mountains or bungee jumping off bridges instead of doing that? Shouldn’t we be leaving a solid mark of our name on everything we do?
And even if our ambitions are a little small, like losing those extra pounds or getting married to the love of our lives – shouldn’t we be seizing every damn moment that exists?
We get how weird this sounds. But we hope you realize the problem by now.
We talk so much about how to live life to the fullest that we have left the meaning of the term far behind and covered it with vague ideas altogether.
Is it this external event we keep raving about, or is it an internal experience? Let’s find out.
What does it mean to ‘live life to the fullest?’
First, things first. We understand the compulsion people feel to do extreme things. It’s this pressure that they have out on themselves. If they are not doing these things, they feel bad. Isn’t it obvious? Who wouldn’t feel bad about watching TV when they could scale a mountain instead?
This demand to live life to the fullest as per the standards set for us becomes a morality, a daily struggle that we have to get through. But if you are constantly judging yourself – “I should have a better income”; “I should have children”; “I should travel more”; are you really living your life to the fullest?
To live your life to the fullest at every first step means having an internal acceptance of the life we are living currently.
Let’s understand it with this example of a person.
This human often lets their house go days without cleaning. Their dishes pile up. Dust bunnies come together and start colonizing the house. The utter unoriginality in the act of cleaning makes this person recoil back. They constantly feel like they should be thinking, working, or writing. But then the house becomes messier each day, and the person’s mood just worsens. So not cleaning the house in a pursuit to live life to the fullest has a funny effect. It ends up making them feel anxious and agitated.
Understand us now?
What you do in this world matters. The line between your internal and external self is not a border; instead, it’s a seam. Living life to the fullest means something that happens and something that you do. It’s just that it is not something that you have to do out there. It is something that you have to do right here, at this moment.
It means seeing every moment as beautiful and necessary, precisely because it is happening or it has happened. And you could be climbing Mt. Everest or watching stranger things at your home and still be able to live your life to the fullest if you internally love the moment you are in.
So How To Live Life To The Fullest?
Now that we have established what it means to live life to the fullest let’s get to the ‘how’ of the question. HOW TO LIVE LIFE TO THE FULLEST?
Just know that the first step before all these ideas is an internal acceptance that you have to take. Once past that, you are on the right track. To help you move further, here are some ways to live life to the fullest:
1. Being In The Present
You don’t have to do “huge” things, give up your stuff, or go save the world to make a difference in the world. This myth (one that too many people believe) should be avoided.
Believing this myth makes you feel inept and fills your mind with worry and self-doubt. And everything slows you down even more (because negative thinking paralyzes you from doing and being your best).
The truth is that everyone impacts those that come into contact with them every day. And the most memorable and significant moments are frequently the most mundane (and small things).
It’s only necessary that you make a connection with someone. And you do so by being yourself while being present with them.
2. It’s All About Being 100 Percent Yourself
You’re valuable, and you’re here for a reason. But don’t be fooled into thinking that discovering your mission is difficult.
This whole “purpose” issue can lead many people down a long road to nowhere. That’s because most people make things more complicated than they need to be. The good news is that this isn’t the case. Even better, you build it from the inside out (purpose isn’t something you have to locate outside of yourself).
Three key factors give your life value and purpose:
- connecting with other people (humans are wired to connect you significance),
- using your unique combination of abilities, skills, and talents to help others (in a way that you enjoy), and
- creating a life centered on your fundamental values (through your decisions and actions).
Living your life in this manner will allow you to recognize the worth you contribute to the world and appreciate it. It will also offer you a more incredible feeling of meaning and purpose.
This is how you live without regrets while also being the most effective. After all, you were born to play this role, so embrace it.
3. You Don’t Need To Take Huge Risks (Just One Small Step At A Time)
It’s pointless to fantasize about how you want your life to be. Thinking that you’ll do it someday or planning around every “what if” – doesn’t work either.
But here’s the thing: all it takes to get started is a single step. And it doesn’t always have to be a big step. Determine the first step and take it, regardless of whether you know the following steps. Because once you’ve taken your first, you’ll be able to figure it out.
The majority of folks become engrossed in determining the whole way. However, you can’t tell for sure. Accepting that you don’t know the way (just the first few steps) and becoming comfortable with that is the key.
4. What Matters Most Is Who You Are
We know this sounds cliche, but knowing who you truly are is important to live life to the fullest. So many people lose themselves every day as they continue to pretend to be someone they are not.
Instead of focusing on other people, shift the lens to yourself. Who are you? What are your interests? What makes you happy and sad? Try to know yourself better. Learn to love the person that you are becoming every passing day.
Conclusion
We need you to promise something to us.
Scratch that. We need you to promise something to yourself.
Promise yourself that with every cell in your body, you will try to live in the present moment.
We understand that expecting someone to enjoy every moment is entirely unrealistic. Because let’s accept it – life isn’t always fun, and it can get tedious to find positivity when everything goes downhill. However, what we can promise to do is to make the most of the remaining moments.
Now that you hopefully know how to live life to the fullest, let’s take to another essential virtue of life. To learn more about how to be grateful in life, click here.
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