It dawned on me recently that I haven’t been living each day to the fullest. It’s one of the reasons I started this blog in the first place – to share the information I’ve learned on my journey to creating an intentional, happy life.
Of course, life has twists and turns, and as I’ve shared in previous blog posts, I feel like I’ve been put through the wringer on multiple occasions since my earlier days of blogging. And, dare I say, blaming factors outside of my control. In a constant rush, I have heard myself say, “life is stressful” more times than I can count. I’ve blamed this and that for my thoughts, feelings and actions. I’ve spent my evenings absorbed in rubbish, ignoring the things that make me feel good and, well, like me. I haven’t been living each day to the fullest, and I’ve only had myself to blame.
I’m still a work in progress, but have been taking small, intentional steps to get me back to where I feel the most belonging – to the version of me that relishes each day as a new opportunity and finds moments of tranquillity amid the storm. I used to be someone who lived, and I know that I can return to my positive and proactive mentality by making three loving changes.
1. Building systems that reduce overwhelm
Such a tick-box exercise is fundamental in allowing me the space to live each day to the fullest. My life always feels noisier when certain tasks feel out of control, or I feel like I can’t keep up. This month, I noticed that I felt utterly overwhelmed in tending to our home. I tried the FlyLady system last year (foolishly, amid a busy period of my life) and couldn’t keep on top of it. So, I lost all routine and constantly felt irritated by my surroundings.
This week, in my Law of Attraction Planner, I wrote down a personal task to create a cleaning schedule, which I drafted by hand on a plain sheet of A4 paper. It’s not aesthetic or perfect, but having a plan sealed in ink has given me the structure I craved. Now, I know that I can refer to a list that is pinned on my kitchen notice board, and complete the jobs listed, one by one, with peace of mind that the house is under control.
Another task was updating the spreadsheet my husband and I created to get everything ready for our first baby, ticking off the long overdue tasks in the process. I cleared out my personal inbox and completed actions that had been sitting in a folder for months. I’ve maintained a routine of ordering my food shop to arrive on Sunday morning. My husband and I completed the biggest wardrobe clear-outs ahead of our new arrival, listing unwanted items on Vinted and sending two bags of clothes to the charity shop.
It might seem odd that living life to the fullest requires such menial, and often boring, tasks to be completed first. But, keeping my mind clear of the clutter enables me to spend my leisure time focusing on what I want to do, rather than the accumulation of day-to-day tasks.
2. Choosing what feels fun to you
Now the boring tasks are in order; what do you consider fun? I know what makes me feel like I’m living each day to the fullest – a spontaneous lunch and sweet treat with my husband, a hike in nature with my walking boots on, or a solo writing date in a coffee shop with a flavoured latte. Equally, I love a creative craft, getting lost in a good book or reading a mindful magazine from front to back.
It might be that you’re finding it hard to put your finger on what feels fun. If so, revisiting your childhood and writing a list of activities that you used to enjoy can be a nostalgic place to start. Then, it’s a case of trial and error in your leisure time to understand which activities still make your heart sing (and importantly, which don’t).
I’m still experimenting with what I find fun. I tried gardening during my period of burnout and couldn’t keep on top of my fast-growing sunflowers. Rather than bring me joy and peace, gardening added to my overwhelm. I tried colouring and didn’t enjoy working in pencil, but aim to try again using acrylic markers. I’m waiting for inspiration to strike on getting started with watercolour painting, too.
3. Bringing yourself back to who you truly are
If you’ve been through a significant change, coming back to yourself might require new ways of thinking. My favourite method is to revisit The Magic by Rhonda Byrne. It helps me to reconnect with my spiritual side, stop looking at life with a victim mentality and remind myself of just how lucky I am to be able to live my life. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve completed the practice, but in periods of difficulty or stagnation, I make a conscious effort to pick a month and redo it.
There are multiple other ways that you can reconnect with yourself. A daily journaling or meditation practice can be profound, and creating a vision board can help you to look at the bigger picture. If it’s helpful, I wrote two blog posts that might be helpful for your journey.
How to raise your vibration fast for manifesting
Your guide to gratitude and the law of attraction | Like attracts like
Now, if you’ve made it this far, all that’s left to do is live life. What are your secrets to living each day to the fullest?