4 Effective Ways To Make Your Life Better

We’ve all probably read a thousand tips and tricks on “How to make your life better.”

But are there any controllable factors that take time away from creating that better life?  Most likely our phones, the internet, the television.  All of which have a place in our life, but shouldn’t be the places that take over our life.

We need balance.  We need a system, a philosophy that supports us to make our life better, not just for today, but for tomorrow and the day after.

And it doesn’t matter much which road you might choose towards experiencing how you can  make your life better; what matters is that you embark on that journey.  

(To learn more about how you and those you love can be happier around money, check out my recently released book here.)

The road to your destination is unlikely to be a straight line, and life will still get complicated and you’ll probably still have unexpected hurdles and obstacles to deal with. But with a system, some new perspectives and a new life philosophy you will no longer waste tomorrow’s opportunities.

Congrats’ you are now in charge of a new company ‘YOU INC.”

And you’re going to create a new system to address all the things that have been in the way of your better life. And it’s going to be brilliant, because it’s going to be customized for you.

Awesome. But will this hold up against all the other tips out there? Does it really work?

I say yes. Absolutely. I enthusiastically endorse and encourage you to give this system a try.

In the past I’ve tried many life hacks which had no staying power so let’s put them on one side for now and get started with philosophy. Not the classical thinking kind, but your very own life philosophy.

Create a new life philosophy

The greatest influence on your life and what you decide to do with the opportunities that knock on your door is based less on your experiences and more on what and how you think.

The way that we each think will send us hurtling towards our own future reality.  And a simple way to make our life better and create a greater, happier future is to change our thinking habits.

Try these simple steps.

Take a long walk, alone with your thoughts. Think about your life, what do you want to do, how do you want to live, what changes do your want to make.  What values are important to you.

Keep a journal.  Capture events and emotions. 

Your life is worth so much.  You are so valuable.  Your life is worth documenting. 

Journalling helps you think more objectively about the actions and reactions of your day.  

It’s this scrutiny that allows you to make adjustments to your life philosophy in ways that are incredibly life-changing.

Be someone you’re responsible to help

You were probably raised to treat others well.  But what about you?

You tell your friends to reach out if they need your help – but do you reach out when the shoe is on the other foot?

You believe in others – but can you believe in yourself?

How often do you give yourself the care and compassion you give to others.

Do you give yourself the same advice you’d give to another?  This is important.  You try to guide your friend away from doing something stupid. So give yourself the same guidance – then act on it.

Loving your neighbor as yourself is great, but this presupposes you already love yourself, and sadly many of us really don’t.

Start treating and valuing yourself as well as you do your friends and you’ll find it will make your life better by eliminating that harsh internal voice that costs you your wellbeing. 

Remember the way you treat yourself sets the standard for how others will treat you.

If you need help with this, try pretending you are counseling your very best friend or closest family member.

Pay attention to the ticking clock

There are three major things that affect our success in living the best life possible.

What we accept as true.

How we feel about what we believe.

What we do with all we accept, feel and believe.

But there’s one other thing.

Even when we wish for more or want more we might not have a burning desire to do what it takes, to become who we need to become to experience more.

There’s always tomorrow. Next week. Next year. We somehow think we’re immortal. 

And so we stay stuck where we are, somehow content that things will be better soon.  Maybe even tomorrow!

But chances are high we waste tomorrow as we wasted today.  Time brings opportunities it’s true, but demands some sense of urgency toward their fulfillment.

It’s good to take a step back, pause and remind yourself that the clock is ticking.

You still have the time you need to become and do what needs to be done to live a richer more fulfilling life, but the windows of new opportunities can be as wasted as the last ones.

Don’t pressure yourself, simnply take a moment to create a mental picture of how your future will look given your current direction.

Imagine in picture form what you desire to achieve and then feel how you would feel had you already achieved it. Feeling is a powerful reminder to your partner in your success, your subconscious mind, that you are deadly serious about your desire.

Breaking habits

We’ve all got bad habits.  We’re aware of some of them, and know we should stop, but sometimes we just feel…well…powerless

Back in my twenties I used to smoke….not a lot, but habitually. 

I came up with a rule that I could follow to help break the habit. Because I’d tried everything else; and it was hard; and worse, nothing worked.    

I’d tell myself I could have a cigarette after I’d done…whatever it was…maybe even some ironing.  Yes I was that desperate!

Each time I wanted a cigarette the ‘do something first’ rule had to apply.  Hand on heart I stopped the smoking habit in a few weeks.

Harvard Professor Shawn Anchor says making bad habits harder to do and good habits easier is a simple way to make changes. And this book is a really good read. The Science of Happiness (Harvard’s Most Popular Course)

And it worked for me, long before I’d even heard of Shawn.

Keep these points in mind

• Be conscious of what you’re thinking and feeling.  You are creating your future tomorrows with your ‘now’ thoughts and feelings.
• Change your reactions to any unwanted experiences in life. Be open to having new perspectives about relationships, money, health and growth.
• Develop the habit of looking down the road so you can see the consequences of your current actions and be able to change your thinking and develop better habits.
• Don’t waste time struggling against what is.  If you’re finding life hard in your career, or without a relationship or feeling sick or in pain, or nothing is going right, accept the situations as the truth of your life right now. No pretending they aren’t happening.  No feeling sorry for yourself.  Use the creative power of your subconscious mind to envisage the outcomes you want. 
• Establish a daily ‘creating’ time to support you in ways that will make your life better.  It’s this inner creating time that will give you the power to create a new philosophy and better thinking habits and ultimately that life you deserve and are capable of achieving.

Encourage one another.

Love Elle

xox