10 life lessons I learnt in 2018

2018.

Adventurous, daring, wacky, sombre, inspiring.

Just a few words which spring to mind when I think of the year I’ve had.

Every New Years Eve I spend the day reviewing my goals, life and plans for a the new year.

I had no idea on 31st December 2017 this year was going to turn out the way it did.

2018 is the first year I can honestly look back on my life and think “This year has transformed my thinking, habits and overall life.”

From the freezing depths of Iceland to the mountains of Australia, I’ve been around the world this year to seek answers to my life.

I’ve met monks, CEO’s, people with no money, wealthy individuals, spiritual gangsters and normal day-to-day individuals.

One thing I learnt is we are all seeking fulfilment, in our own way.

Some more successfully than others.

Here are 10 things I learnt this year through my own experiment with life.

1. Embrace vulnerability.

The majority of people are living out their best days conforming. People have goals because of our parents, professors, colleagues and bosses that want us to achieve a certain thing usually to satisfy their own egos.

A lot of individuals live their life based on other people’s perceptions of what we should be doing.

“I am not what I think I am, and I am not what you think I am. I am what I think you think I am.” ― Charles Horton Cooley

Imagine living a life fully aligned to your own beliefs, values and principles?

Only by embracing vulnerability and not accepting anything less than going after what you want in life will you achieve happiness.

2. The only way to live a true happy life is to live in selfless sacrifice.

Money, status and popularity is the by-product of the value you bring to your customers, friends, family and people around you.

Status, money, promotions, material wealth doesn’t mean anything if you live a life full of constant dissatisfaction.

3. People are often too busy being busy to focus on their passions.

Prioritising the things that make you feel good, give you joy and actually bring you closer to your goals will make you happier and satisfied. We’ve all had days when we’ve left work and feel down in the dumps because we haven’t achieved anything apart from replying to 200 emails, 5 meetings and 100 LinkedIn messages.

We need to create space in our minds, diaries, calendars and lives to focus on things which bring us the utmost productivity towards our goals.

4. Making time for the most important things in life is vital for your own sanity.

When was the last time you actually made time to read that book? Write that article? Visited that country?

By cutting down on what you consume, you can make more time for what you desire to do.

5. There is no point achieving your goals if you have no one to share them with.

This was a stark realisation when I was in NYC. I had a big salary, promotion, new challenge and living in a new country. But I had no one to share it with.

What’s the point?

6. Self investment, will double your success in life.

Self investment doesn’t mean just paying for an expensive massage, spa day or holiday. It could be something as simple as reading 30 minutes a day, journalling, meditating. By taking the time to work on yourself and quieten the mind it will give you space to realise what’s important to you in life and where your focus should be.

7. Pick a hobby, stick with it.

This is only my second article. Do you know how long this has taken me to get this far?

A loooooooooooong time.

I’ve been wanting to start a blog for years. Why haven’t I done it? Because I am a professional procrastinator. I put things off, I start something and then quit because I get bored.

Learning to engage the mind to focus on the important things, batching the small tasks will create freedom in your schedule to put all your effort into the activities you’ve been putting off.

8. Most people are only concerned with themselves. Sadly, this is true.

Most people are always thinking about what they can get from others, what they need to do to keep their jobs, what they need to do to be happy, you scratch my back, I scratch yours.

It’s the world we live in.

Look out for these people, they are energy vampires. They take, but don’t give.

Have a look at the people closest to you? Is the relationship balanced? Are they energy vampires?

9. We must live in the now.

I’ve learnt in the world of social media, instant gratification and endless distraction we’re slowly losing our minds by not living in the now.

Think, right now, as you read this. Are you reading it with a bunch of other thoughts?

“I have to reply to an email”

“I have messages I must send out”

“I so many meetings this week”

“I have a deadline coming up”

We are living too much in the future, without focusing on the here and now.

I’m learning to focus on one thing at a time, having a flexible plan and enjoying the process by appreciating the journey to the goal.

10. The Western world can learn so much from the East.

Whilst in Indonesia I was surrounded by people who have less than ￡5 a day to live off. I witnessed acts of kindness I just can’t forget. But one the realisations I had was they seemed more fulfilled than me.

Why could this be?

• They aren’t glued to social media and technology.
• They spend a lot of time with friends and family.
• They’re grateful for everything and not thinking about what they want all the time.
• Majority of the East live for a higher purpose.
• They take their time in the day. They aren’t rushing doing a million things, bombarded with constant emails, notifications etc. They have time to think.

Now I’m not saying we need to and live in the hills of Tibet to achieve a happier more fulfilled life, but if we can control how we consume our days and make time to create space in our minds I’m convinced we’d be more contended.

What are you making time for?

Are you deeply fulfilled?

Do you take time every day for personal development?

How do you want to be remembered?

If you were to die today, what would you obituary say?

What do you need to do to change your life?

If you’re content, fulfilled, happy and live every day with abundance of energy than you’re the envy of a lot of people.

Through self awareness we and working on our inner selves, we can change the outlook of our lives.