Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 3: Take stock of your life
• Part 2 of 3: Changing your outlook
• Part 3 of 3: Organizing your life for change
• Warnings

You can easily become overwhelmed by anything that society expects of you. Many people get so bogged down in small commitments that they lose sight of priorities. Getting your life straight means thinking deeply about what you really want now. After that, you have the freedom to make changes in your daily life, based on your greatest aspirations for happiness and well-being.

To step

Part 1 of 3: Take stock of your life

1. Visualize your best self. What are your main qualities? Understanding the unique gifts you have to offer the world will help you figure out which direction you want your life to take. Take a few hours and think deeply about what makes you special.
   • A good way to identify what makes you you is to spend time in a place where you can be yourself completely. Go to your favorite place in nature, or spend time with people who understand you well. When you are completely yourself, what qualities come to the surface?
   • It can also help to ask people you trust what good qualities they see in you. Sometimes it is difficult to see our own strength clearly.
2. List your priorities. Spend time thinking about your priorities, regardless of what your current commitments are. Write down the happiest moments of your life, and prioritize the areas of your life that triggered those moments. Remember, you don't have to think about what's feasible and what's not, it's about what matters most to you. This will give you more insight into what you cherish, rather than how to achieve it. Keep the list short and sweet - no more than five things. Ask yourself the following things to find out your priorities:
   • How would you like to live your life?
   • Would you like to be healthy and vital?
   • Would you like a deeper contact with the people in your life?
   • What would you like to be proud of in ten years' time?
3. Make a daily schedule. If you take a completely average day, what does that mean? By establishing a daily schedule, not of what you would like, but what you are actually doing, you can see your "current" strategies that you are trying to accomplish with your priorities.
   • Now that you have this schedule, see if your priorities are reflected in your daily activities or not. Can you make connections with what you cherish and what you need to do every day? For example, if you already eat a healthy breakfast every day, you can relate that to your priority of maintaining a healthy body and mind. If you don't see connections between how you spend your time and what your real priorities are, you know it's time for significant changes.
4. Separate the urgent from the valuable. Take another look at your daily schedule and divide everything into two different categories: urgent and valuable. Everything we do has a meaning to us, otherwise we wouldn't do it. You do things that are urgent because you feel you have to, and because if you don't, there are consequences that you would rather avoid. Then look at the things that are valuable. If something is valuable, there is something inseparably enjoyable about the activity itself, and it is in line with your priorities (even if only slightly).
   • You may find it difficult where to post an activity like "call your mom." Ask yourself if you call your mom every day because you feel guilty or because you might hurt her if you don't speak up. Or do you call her because you care about your family and because you enjoy talking to her? If you answer "yes" to the first question, the activity is "urgent", if the second question can be answered "yes" it is "valuable".
5. Make a list of your obligations and tasks. These need not only be the obligations we consider crucial, such as paying the rent and shopping, but also the obligations we have to others. What are the things you should do for fear of some sort of punishment or shame? Although it will never completely disappear, you can often see more clearly whether you are acting out of a priority or out of fear, urgency, or obligation if you recognize what you are doing out of fear.
   • You gradually learn to make different decisions about what to do and when. And this time, you do it with your priorities and growth in mind, rather than out of fear of the consequences.
   • Learn which obligations can be changed, split, or delegated so that you can better achieve your values ​​and priorities. Can't an aunt, friend or colleague help you with your obligations from time to time? Or maybe the task is actually someone else's responsibility - then let that person take responsibility and get it done.
6. Think about your relationships. In order to live without being overwhelmed or confused about what your priorities really are, it is critical to surround yourself with people you feel comfortable with so that you can be confident and creative. The next time you go out, be aware of who is getting your energy, and who it seems like an obligation to talk to. Thus, deep down you know whose presence is truly nourishing you, making you feel more energized than obligated in your relationship with others.
   • Sincerely ask yourself these questions: "Who do I feel small to when I am around them? Who do I feel like my contributions are insignificant to?" You will be amazed to discover that there are people you love very much, to whom you are submissive, and to whom you are afraid to show your true feelings.

Part 2 of 3: Changing your outlook

1. Embrace difficult situations. Our lives are filled with others with whom we have to work and share, yet often have very different priorities and styles. Are there conversations you would like to have that you push aside for fear of the other person's reaction? Without judging or accusing the other, you can talk about the ways in which you differ. Then you can brainstorm how to proceed with these differences in mind. Sometimes you can eliminate the differences with a simple solution so that the frustrations and dissatisfaction in everyday life no longer stand in the way.
   • Maybe you have a colleague who always leaves the least favorite job to you: filling in the papers. If you calmly let your co-worker know that filling out papers is a major source of stress for you, you can come up with a way to share the burden. Who knows, your colleague just always forgets to fill in the papers, and he / she doesn't really mind doing it for you at all. Either way, you will feel a lot better if you can make an adjustment that gives you more time for more fun things.
2. Spend time alone. Make sure you regularly think about yourself and your priorities. Imagine meeting a close friend with whom you can share your deepest insecurities and questions about the direction of your life. Now imagine that you are that friend yourself. If you are as sweet and understanding as a friend would be, you can expect even more intimacy and understanding than you could ever get from another person.
   • The more time you spend with yourself, the better. If possible, sit alone in the garden or in a park nearby. Then you think less about the other things you should be doing, and you can enjoy the beautiful things better so that you are calmer and grateful.
3. Turn negative thoughts about yourself into encouragement.Without realizing it, many people spend all day thinking things like, "I can't do this," or "I'm not good enough." Anytime you find yourself putting yourself down or judging yourself, refute it with an affirmation of what you can do.
   • Suppose you were given an assignment at school to summarize a long, difficult text. A little voice may come to mind that tells you that you will never understand, because you are already too far behind. Answer this little voice by telling it that you know that you always do well under pressure, or that you can write well anyway, whatever the topic.
4. Accept the past. Getting your life straight is impossible without freeing yourself from past regrets. If you can, make it up to someone who faces a profound lack of decision-making in your life. That could be a parent you haven't seen in years or a friend you've never spoken to after an argument. If you get stuck in anger over a divorce or are disappointed because you didn't get that promotion, you don't have enough energy to move forward and change.
   • If you make it right, you don't have to have a long confrontation about what happened. What is important is that you let this person know that you acknowledge the unresolved issues with them, and that you plan to move on with your life with respect for them and that you are grateful for the experience. By writing a short e-mail you can also show that you have overcome the situation. By opening the closet door ajar and greeting the corpses in it, you can usher in a sense of peace.

Part 3 of 3: Organizing your life for change

1. Start every day with a to-do list. Lists are a great way to get rid of feelings of chaos and overwhelm. They also help you to get rid of stress, because you can clearly see what exactly you need to do. Using a list as a starting point, you can see how much room you have to review your daily activities. Having your to-do list in front of you, you can rearrange the items on it so that the things you care about and make you happy are above the things you consider urgent.
   • You may have to pay a bill within four days. But on your list is also a walk through the neighborhood.Obviously, once you've paid the bill, you'll have less stress - that's an obligation you'd better get out of the way! But because you don't necessarily have to today, you can also choose to only settle that bill when you really have to, because your need for exercise and fresh air is important to your happiness at this time.
2. Clean your house as if it were spring. A clean, open space in your home or at work has a significant impact on how capable we feel to perform tasks. Clean your house from top to bottom, throw away broken things and give things you no longer want to charity. Recycle waste paper that fills your drawers and do the same with your virtual space on your computer. Get rid of old emails, documents and contacts that would otherwise fill up your folders. This makes you feel refreshed and open to the possibility of new and different things that can take its place.
3. Regulate your sleep rhythm. Research has shown that even after a few days of not getting enough sleep, many people get a worse mood and are less able to process negative emotions. That means you will feel less inspired to achieve the goals that prioritize the best version of yourself. has stated.
   • If you can't sleep 7-8 hours a night, take a daytime nap after a night when you haven't gotten enough sleep. Improving your sleeping habits is invaluable.
4. Find a diet that works for you. Organizing your life also means examining what you eat and how your eating habits affect your days. Whether you have prioritized refining your culinary skills or not, it is important to develop good habits when it comes to buying and preparing your food. Avoid stress about what to eat and when.
   • Make a list of all the basic ingredients you always want to have at home so you can make a quick meal or healthy snack. By getting reliable options at home, you avoid eating too much or too little because you are under stress.
5. Move to get rid of tense energy. Through movement, our brains produce endorphins, adrenaline and other substances that help to reduce tension and improve mood. All kinds of exercise are good for regulating bodily functions and improving emotional well-being. Yoga, strength training, and cardio training are all good options.
   • Do not commit to any amount of exercise that is not desirable if you want to be able to accomplish your priorities. The goal is to make you fitter so that you can live the life you want, not to saddle yourself with an obligation that you actually don't like. If you know that having big muscles isn't one of your priorities, go for brisk walking instead of strength training.
6. Keep an eye on your flaws. Do you smoke or drink, or do you regularly hang in front of the TV? The flaws are not the problem, but how you use them shows you what you actually do with your time. By becoming aware of the role of your flaws in your life - and they change often - you can learn how to use them more responsibly, without giving up completely. The next time you go for a drink, ask yourself, "Is this helping me achieve a priority?"
   • The answer doesn't necessarily have to be no - maybe a glass of wine with friends or family is very valuable to you. But drinking may prevent you from getting to things on your to-do list or see your priorities in action.

Warnings

• Have patience! Change takes time, and the hardest thing about your life is that life always keeps coming your way.