Your Life's Ladder

Certain birthdays make you pause for a moment and reflect. Contemplate whether you’re focusing on what’s most important to you. Determine if you’re spending your time well.

I turned thirty a year ago and realized my twenties were gone. Those ten years were packed to the brim with adventure, fun, romance and hustle. I racked up two tattoos, painted about 40 canvases, fell in love and got married, adopted three weird dogs, lived in four states and worked a ton of long, hard hours.

How you spend your time is a reflection of what is most important to you. When I analyzed my 20’s, I learned work, fun and love were at the top of my list. Health, family, friends, spirituality and giving back were very low.

In my 30’s, I want to make a concerted effort to align how I spend my time with what is most important to me. I came up with a thought exercise which I call my life ladder.

Each rung represents a core focus area like family, friends, career or marriage. I ranked core focus areas by how much they contributed towards a full and happy life. For example, I found my marriage is a great source of joy in life for me. In turn, marriage was placed at the top of my ladder. Conversely, going out after work every night and drinking is less of a priority, thus I bumped ‘fun’ down a few rungs.

I also learned this exercise could help me make major life decisions with more confidence. We recently struggled with some difficult decisions having to do with taking a new job and moving. We realized making the decision was much easier once we looked through the lens of what’s most important to us right now - each other, family, friends and health. Deciding to move was a clear winner based upon our current priorities.

I hope this thought exercise may be helpful to others, as it has helped me regain a sense of happiness, purpose and control.

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