LOVE YOUR LIFE

According Eleanor Roosevelt, “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams”.

To understand our true nature, we have to have an appreciation of our place in the universe. We are part of the universe and are subject to the universal laws, which hold it all together and keep it running smoothly.

We are born from the stars in a very literal sense since our bodies are made up of elements, which are produced in stars: carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen and traces of other elements. We are an interconnecting and ever changing part of the world around us and even as we breathe, we are exchanging elements such as carbon with plants and trees. When you eat, you ingest elements from the earth, plants and animals, which become incorporated in the cells and atoms of your body. Each of us is exchanging particles on a physical level with our breath, so that everything in the universe is interconnected.

Quoting from Chief Seattle Dwamish, “All things share the same breath… the beast, the tree; the man… the air shares its spirit with all the life it supports.

Your whole body continuously replaces the elements it is made up of throughout your life, so that by old age, it is almost very different in composition from the body you were born with. When you die, the elements you are made of break down and go back to the earth to be recycled.

Your Dreams
Think about your dream life
- Did you make your list of the things you would do if you won the lottery? If not, do it now.
- Finish the list of things you would do if you only had 6months to live.
- Divide your lists into 'things I have to do' and things I'd like to do'.
- What absorbs you completely?

Think about your principles and values
- What are your main principles? What is important to you?
- List the character traits you are proud of in yourself and why.
- List the character traits that need some work and why.

Focus
- Do a SWAT analysis on your life. List your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats
- Think big… what would you do if you knew you could not possibly fail?
- List all the things you would like to be or do however outrageous they seem.
- What is your intuition telling you...? Find that quiet space in your mind and really listen to the small voice inside you.

Think about what it will take to change
- What habits can you change that will help you achieve your dream life?
- How badly do you want to change your life? What are you willing to give up in order achieving it all?

- Have you written your goals and action plans? Do this now if you have not done so already. If you have written them out, review them to ensure they make sense and are still what you want.

- Are the physical, intellectual/mental, social/relationships, spiritual/personal growth, financial/wealth creation and time aspects of your life in balance? If not, consider how you can balance all these aspects better.

- Is your goals specific, realistic, time sensitive and capable of change? Have you built in a reward system as you achieve your goals?

- Do you have a plan to manage your time better? This is an important aspect and its worth reviewing frequently. Find ways to cut out the time bandits and think of ways of maximising your productivity.

Review your financial position
-write down all the ways you could improve your finances.
- Review your plan for making the money you need to enable you to change your life.
Think about the ways in which other controls you and your thoughts:
- Can you identify areas where past conditioning has influenced your adult life positively or negatively?
- Are you really living the you have chosen for yourself?
- Do you feel free to live the life you want? If not, what is curtailing your freedom?
- Do you hold opinions and beliefs about things that you are not sure you really believe? Identify some of the issues around beliefs that may be preventing you from finding freedom in your life.
- Do you make excuses that prevent you from making changes in your life? Identify some of these and explore them further.

Think about the things that are stopping you from finding your dreams
- Are you living the life you want now or are you planning for retirement? Identify why you cannot achieve these things now.
- We all have fears. What fears are preventing you from moving forward with the things you want to do in your life?
- What sort of effort do you think you need to make to enable you to achieve the changes you wish to make to your life? Is the effort worth it?
- Do you have any unhealthy attachments that are preventing you from making changes?

Think about what you expect from your life
- Is your plan too perfect? Are you expecting too much of yourself with no leeway for unexpected opportunities? How can you build flexibility into goals and plans?
- What are the problems you are facing or will face with your plan to change? Identify the hidden opportunities in each one of these adversities.
- Identify all the ways you can feel happy right now. what can you do today to achieve a happy state of mind regardless of your circumstances?

To be continued

Amansanboafo Osei Frimpong
Media personnel and Counsellor
Radiofocus
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You can also listen to the author on radiofocus on ghanaweb, modernghana.com, spectrumradio.net, sky channel 0185 or radiofocusuk.co.uk on Mondays from 11am-1pmuk time and Saturdays from 9am -1pmuk time on akwantuomunsem talkshow as he is the host and creator of the show.