We’ve all made mistakes and had troubles and it’s hard to argue with the fact that sometimes we’re our own worst enemies.
Yet life’s challenges aren’t meant to stop us in our tracks, nor to encourage us to sell ourselves short. They’re designed to reveal our inner power, our deep purpose for being here and to support us in creating the abundant life available to us all.
Here’s a few ways you can move beyond the past, live with more purpose, create your abundant future and develop a whole new philosophy on success.
1. Don’t live life backwards
The old saying tells us to believe it when we see it. But how can progress ever be made if we’re stuck for with only what we see? The Wright brothers would never have flown. We’d never have the telephone, or smart phone if that was true. The truth is you’ll see it when you believe it. This is the way of all growth. Use that incredible power you have, your imagination and see yourself in that great relationship, see yourself being financially free, see yourself living the best life possible. That’s living life the right way.
2. Watch your inner conversations
The stories you tell yourself about your experiences and about yourself create the next experience; the next triumph or disaster. Remember, whatever you have in your mind you’ll see it in your life.
Tell yourself you are a unique, awesome creation and your experiences will reflect that. Tell yourself how useless you are, how hard life is and you’ll experience that. You’re here to experience the wonder of life, and enjoy yourself while you’re at it. Begin to celebrate yourself and the world will celebrate right along with you.
3. Take one step forward
If you just put one foot in front of the other you’ll arrive at new exhilarating places, meet new and fascinating people and take new and greater actions. All this because you chose not to sit at the starting point.
And when the journey is over and you reach your goal or your wishes are fulfilled you’ll wonder why on earth you worried so much, doubted so often and took so long to get down to what you knew you needed to do.
4. Hold on to hope
When things don’t turn out the way you wanted, try saying to yourself, “Something wonderful will come out of this”. And believe it. Someday everything will fall into place. Amazing things tend to happen at the very moment you’re about to give up hope.
Be the dreamer of improbable dreams because even though it might not seem like it now, the thing you never got might just be the best thing that never happened. Yes, I speak from experience. 🙂 Allow for your rainbow to shine through the storm. Allow for something wonderful to happen.
5. Mediate for others
We can’t fix anyone’s life. What we can do is share, care, love, hug, listen and support. And we can use our greatest gift on behalf of others, our imagination.
Imagination is where all progress begins, it’s the gateway to reality and an awesome force that can be used on behalf of others. In your mind’s eye see them as their happiest self, their successful self.
See them as being and having what they would want to be and have. Refuse to accept anything but the best for them. Mediate with the unlimited Universe on their behalf and if they’re not in the state of consciousness to accept the good things you’ve imagined for them, they’ll land right on your doorstep. You’ll receive the reward of your kindness to another.
6. Speak up
One of the biggest challenges I see in relationships is poor communication, especially where one person expects the other to be a mind reader. Newsflash. None of us (as far as I know) has that ability.
You have to tell people what you want. If you’re feeling resentment, speak up. If you’re feeling left out, speak up. If you feel you’re not being heard, speak up. Share your deepest wishes, your deepest needs. Tell others what’s on your mind. It’s that simple.
7. Put your foot down
To live with purpose and create abundance we need to maintain healthy boundaries. Empathise with whatever someone’s going through but don’t accept toxic behaviour.
Don’t give anyone the power to rob you of your inner peace. Put your foot down.
8. Light that match
Sometimes you just have to light the match and burn the bridges to the past. It doesn’t really matter who you used to be, or what you used to do. The energy you’re wasting on re-living what’s gone and done could be better used to create your fabulous future.
Remember the past no longer exists, except in your memory. Don’t allow the misery of yesterday to steal the happiness of today. The past can’t define you, unless you let it. Make today the most wonderful amazing day possible because your future depends on it.
9. Never say never
After my husband died I told myself that was it for me. I’d had more love than most people get in a lifetime and I lived there, in my past experiences. Until one day I woke up and said “Hold on, why not? Why not something even more wonderful.
There’s no limits to wonderfulness. And here I am today in the greatest relationship I’ve ever known. Allow yourself the pleasure of saying yes to life and life will almost certainly say yes right back.
10. Stop caring
Not about the important things in life, but those little niggling events that don’t really matter in the long run. Stop caring if someone gets into the lane ahead of you in traffic. Stop caring if you have to change your plans, tomorrow is another day.
Stop caring if someone doesn’t respond to you in the way you want. Let go of your minor annoyances and enjoy the freedom of being in control of how you feel.
11. Spiritually speaking
Your consciousness is creating your reality. The arrangement of your thoughts is creating your reality. And your mind is always arranged with the thoughts of what you believe to be true and who you believe you are.
If you can’t or won’t believe that you are designed to prosper in every way then you’ll remain who you are and have what you currently have in life.
Don’t accept this. You are worthy of living a great life.
Rise to the challenge of bringing your fresh and exciting future into being. Rise above your old beliefs so you can live an awesome, purposeful, abundant life.
Use the keys of desire, imagination, and a steady attention on the desire you wish to have fulfilled. This is the way to your abundant future and purposeful life.
Have you ever felt frozen in your tracks and had a hard time living with purpose?
Whether in business or life?
I’d love to know your story.
Encourage one another.
Love Elle
Elle,
All of these are great, but I really agree with #11 “Spiritually Speaking.” When I realized that I could affect my world with my thoughts, my world changed drastically for the better. This life IS what I make of it. THanks for the reminder.
Hello Debbie, isn’t it amazing how with greater awareness of how life works, once we begin a new practice, everything changes. 🙂
There are so many good suggestions here, Elle. I love them all. I was first struck by taking one step forward. I think everything is so much easier when we stay in the present moment and take the next step. I also love meditating for the good of all. This is a real keeper with ideas to apply day after day.
Hello Sandra, that one step forward thing is a mantra for us recovering procrastinators. Just choosing one step really does lead easily to the next and before we know it, we’re ahead! 🙂
All are relevant to an adult leaving behind the trauma of childhood sexual abuse. Thank you.
Hello Tillie, there seem to be some ‘truths’ in our world that are applicable to us all. I’m happy to know that the post would be relevant for someone leaving behind childhood trauma. This makes it extra special to me. Thank you for that. 🙂
Great reminders here, Elle to live your best life. I love this line – “Allow yourself the pleasure of saying yes to life.” I know my attitude can make the difference in how I approach a challenging situation or life in general. It can all start with just appreciating the day when I first wake up and going from there.
I’m so glad you found another love in your life and now have the joy that a wonderful relationship brings. Thank you for a lovely articles. I’m always motivated to live better when I visit your blog!
Hello Cathy, we’re all a work in progress aren’t we? But you are so right that the right attitude tends to bring the right solutions or actions. Our attitude truly is everything so we should be consciously choosing a good one! And thanks for your kind words of encouragement. You’ve made my day. 🙂
Thank you
I do need help / support each day I wake
why , what when and i need to see a future ..
how can you help me with peace and tons of self love 1st
Hi Tony, sorry to hear life is a bit tough right now. If I were in your shoes, and I have been there, I’d begin small. I’d find an affirmation that felt good about who I was and repeat it every day. And each morning and night I’d write down 3 things I liked about myself, or that I’d done that I was proud of. It’s a small beginning, but remember the saying big trees from little acorns grow. 🙂
If we truly embrace these 11 points, we’ll have life sorted – collectively they bring comfort, inspiration, future anticipation of good things, self-sufficiency, encouragement to act, treating ourselves well and with respect – now that’s an incredible recipe for a great and purposeful life. Thank you for such an upbeat and inspiring set of reminders Elle. xx
Hi Laura, nice to see you here. Wouldn’t it be lovely if we could simply wave our magic wand and say, yep I’m living like this from now on! Since we’re all works in progress if we manage to live purposefully a lot of the time, we’re probably doing pretty good! It’s easy to tell. Our life reflects our inner world, so we can see where the tweaks need to happen. Good job for me! 🙂
Lovely as always Elle. #3 resonates with me today, a wonderful reminder that every small step forward brings us progress, and if we take enough, we can write that novel, build that house, paint that room – whatever we want to do. x
So true Ellen. I’m definitely a one step at a time person, however tiny…otherwise procrastination would have a permanent hold on me! 🙂
Hi Elle – agree with all these, especially ‘never say never’. I’ve been stuck many times in life and stayed there because I wouldn’t look at all the alternatives. Once you open yourself up to any possibility, everything becomes possible
So true Mark, opening yourself up to new possibilities and a new perspective and suddenly everything looks different. Amazing how that works! 🙂
Wow Elle, I have just written about this so I have a new motto/ saying Rediscovering Abundance through rediscovering my purpose that i wrote out after i was struggling with my story and my purpose.
All of those 11 points are meaningful to me In Sunday these words came to me inspired by a movie i was watching : My art opens hearts xxoo
How fabulous Suzie. You and I are often on the same page, coming from our own unique direction. I love the idea that your art opens hearts…isn’t that the truth…it’s so beautiful and harmonious. 🙂
Thanks Elle for the reminders. Many times we know what we need to do but seldom ever do them. I am guilty of not doing most of these even though I knew in my heart those are the things I need to do to lead a happy and successful life. I am guilty of living the past . Thanks for reminding me that my best life is here and now..
You’re not alone Rose…many of us fall of the path of doing what we know lead us to our greatest life. Wish I knew why, but I don’t! Speaking for myself I just jump right back on…don’t you find it get’s easier to do that every time? 🙂
Hi Elle, Beautiful reminders again. “Hold on to hope” , sometimes easier said than done, there maybe times that we feel so helpless and stuck with disappointments in life, don’t give up, just hang on and everything will fall into place. Thanks for sharing. Really great.
You speak truth Sherill…it isn’t easy…but if we remind ourselves that we’ve come through every challenging, hurtful moments we’ve had and are still here…maybe that’s the hope we need to remember the sun will shine on us again. 🙂
Hi, I do love your writing … it does inspire, but I find I go to bed believing tomorrow I will want to achieve but when I wake in the morning all alone I cant find that inspiration.
Its not like I haven’t had to inspire myself all my life but I am finding as an empty nester now w/o my little darlings to set an example for I cant find it in my soul to do for myself.
When I was a teen the adventure of living a better adult life spurred me on. When I got married, having children, all that spurred me on, even after the divorce the children were my spur. But in the past decade I found I was being used by “the one”. My own two children have ostracized me from their lives and now its only me … I don’t like to sound like a “poor woe is me” story so I stick to myself cause I don’t know how to respond when people want to hear my story and its not a happy story.
Now its just me and my two dogs. They love me. They don’t run away. They don’t destroy what we have but they aren’t quite the same as sharing human contact. For now they are my everything and they don’t care if my housework isn’t pristine. They don’t care if my hormones have made me gain weight or if my hair falls out and mixes with their hairballs. They just want me here. I am really stuck for now. But I figure if I haven’t given up, one morning I will get up and I will get inspired and I may get out and actually try something new again.
One day I will.
Hi Yvonne…I think you are already inspiring. You words inspire…your acknowledgement that you are open to trying something new, when you’re ready, are inspiring, especially coming from your current situation. I would say, please give yourself a big hug for where you are. You might be bowed right now, but you are not broken and one soon day dear one, you will rise and live again and love again and be happy again, because clearly you have a backbone of steel. Meanwhile…I’ll cheer you on from the sidelines. 🙂 Love Elle