5 questions each of us should answer once a year
- What do I think is the point of my life?
- What have I done in the last month that has made me feel really proud of someone other than myself?
- What am I looking forward to most and when do I expect it to happen?
- When I feel less than happy or confident what do I do to cheer myself up and restore my happiness and confidence?
- Is there anyone I would give up my life to save?
These are serious questions. If you give frivolous answers you may have a problem of not being able to confront things that matter in your life.
What do your answers mean?
If you cannot think of the point of your life you are not enjoying it. You don’t need me to tell you that life is precious. It is also sometimes fragile, painful, sad. We do not have control over our lives but we do have control over how we make the best of them. We can’t do that until we have a purpose. Our purpose, or destination, is about this life, not some after-life. If your life seems to have little or no point you can make it much more fulfilled by finding your purpose. I suggest you read “The Tree on the other side of the Field” for a start.
Satisfaction about what we achieve is excellent. We all deserve to be proud of our successes. When we do something that helps someone else achieve we reach a higher level of satisfaction. Whether it is our life partner, our children, our employees or someone we hardly know, to be proud of them reflects us as a wonderfully happy personality. Without this we are deprived of one of the greatest joys in life. But who is it we help achieve?
As children we looked forward to treats, outings, getting new possessions, meeting new people. All of life should be exciting steps of looking forward, right up to the end. If you have nothing to look forward to you may be miserable, even thinking you are going downhill. You can decide what you look forward to. But what exactly do you look forward to?
Everyone feels sad, dejected, lonely at times. It is quite normal to feel this way occasionally. The smart way out is to be proactive in making your purpose seem more achievable. You control your mind and this is the time to exercise that control. When you do so, short-term, transient feelings of sadness pass quickly and life becomes full of GUSTO again. So what do you do to rejuvenate your temperament? I suggest you read GUSTO!
Making the supreme sacrifice is a pretty tall order. Millions did it – and still do it – in wars and conflicts. It is both heroic and tragic. You can certainly imagine yourself protecting your family but what about other people? Pause a minute and think who you would be prepared to give your life to save. The answer may be nobody. If that is the case, say so. It is not compulsory that you would be prepared to sacrifice your life, is it? Well, is it?
Your answers are for you, not for anyone else. They have probably made you think. You may not even have answers to all the questions – that in itself is an answer. If they start you wondering what you would like the answer to be they will have stimulated your mind.
The Daily Paradox asks no more than that.
To read “The Tree on the other side of the Field”, click here to read it online.
To read “GUSTO!” click here to request a copy from Terrific Mentors.