When I hear the phrase ‘life lessons’, I tend to think of all the things you learn in your 20s. All the hard life lessons that you learn just by doing, by growing as a person and throwing yourself at new things. Life lessons can hit you at any time and create a serious a-ha moment! In your twenties you learn a lot to grow into the person you’re supposed to become, so many times you realize that it wasn’t so bad, you lived and you learned.
I’d love to hear the lessons you’ve learned yourselves too. Don’t forget to drop a comment under this article, let’s share how we’ve grown so far!
Lesson number 1: If you don’t have time you have to make it
I hate feeling like I don’t have enough time to get things done. Especially if I have to leave work on time and can’t stay late to finish things. So I’ve been learning how to make more time ‘appear’. Whether it’s by managing my tasks on the tube or getting into the office earlier. What really changed my attitude and mindset was this great class on Time Theming that I signed up to with Skillshare.
As you know, I’ve been using Skillshare for a long time now to get stuff done, but I’d never really thought about how it could improve me as a person. I learned that I was treating my work day as my “entire day”, and that I wasn’t using the hours before and after work as well as I should have. Once I accepted that everything else started to fall into place.
Skillshare is offering CGD readers two FREE months of unlimited access to their more than 17,000 online classes. Just click here to start your two free months – and you can try their Time Theming class or thousands of other great classes today!
Lesson number 2: Enjoy your life
It’s so easy to get bogged down with the details and forget the bigger picture. But for a happier life, you have to step back a few steps and try to rephrase those little annoyances into something else. For example, I get annoyed by my commute – forgetting that the reason I’m commuting is that I bought my own house! That’s crazy, right? And something I don’t think we have celebrated yet.
Sometimes it can feel a bit boastful to own your achievements and give yourself time to enjoy them. But I think it’s necessary! Enjoy your life! Don’t apologize for doing it. Have a glass of wine, take a minute to congratulate yourself and just give it your best shot!
Lesson number 3: You find true friends in the most unlikely of places
This year has been crazy busy so far, and it’s not over yet! I’ve often been too busy to even make a phone call, coming home and putting on my pajamas straight away. But my best friends haven’t held that against me at all. They’ve celebrated every success and every loss with me along the way, made time to surprise me and remind me to check in with them and will always be there for me as long as I need them. Likewise, I am always picking up on their emotions and sending gifts or pep talks when needed. You might be able to count your true friends on one hand, but the truer friends they are, the happier you will be.
When you’re younger you seem to have a lot of friends, and some one-sided friendships. I think back when I was younger it was important to have a lot of friends, and not really think about the quality of friendships. As I’ve got older, almost all of those friendships have fizzled out. I’ve been really surprised by the people who have actually made an effort. Thanks to Facebook, people I never normally would have socialized with have suddenly become my go-to Friday night favorites. True friends are hard to spot, and you find them in the most unlikely of places.
Lesson number 4: Channel positivity to everyone you meet
This seems like a simple life lesson, but sometimes we are all guilty of being bogged down by negative vibes. So far this year I’ve learned that I am in control of how things affect me. It’s something we all forget, that if we just take a positive point of view, refuse to talk about the negatives and think only about the little wins, we will suddenly feel a hell of a lot lighter. Positivity attracts positivity because when you’re feeling positive you’re kinder to other people. You’re less likely to sigh at the person in front of you taking too long in the queue, you’re giving out good vibes. It spreads, you know.
I am so much happier when I ‘channel’ that positivity to everyone. When I smile at people, let them cut the queue and remember that they might be having a really awful day. You never know.
GOOD THINGS
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