How You Can TRULY Live Your Life

Are you truly living? Have you ever blown out the candles on your birthday cake and thought to yourself, “Another year already?” There seems to be a big difference between living your life, and feeling alive in your life. If you are simply living your life, then you are probably used to the monotony. Life is just a series of going through the motions, and days have a tendency to blend together. If however, you’re alive in your life, then every day feels more exciting than the last. You wake up before your alarm clock sounds because you can’t wait for what is in store. You feel like electricity is coursing through your veins on the regular. You feel like you are unstoppable! So, as your relationship writing friend, I need to check in with you right now. Do you feel like you might be coasting? Are you seizing every moment that comes your way? Here are the five ways that you know you’re truly living, and not just existing.

1. You Are Loving Fully - You know what sucks? Being in a relationship where you don’t really care about the other person. Just like working a job you don’t really care about, a lackluster relationship just saps your energy. It drains you, and it slowly robs you of your sense of integrity. “Yeah, but she’s really supportive of me sometimes,” starts sounding more like “Yeah, but it pays the bills.” However, if you brag about your partner to your friends, if you find yourself telling your "story" to others all the time, and if you two are that sickeningly sweet, affectionate pair in public that possibly offends some people, then you are most likely loving fully.

2. You Are Following Your Heart, And Not Other People’s Advice - An evolved man listens to the opinions of others and, while he certainly considers their advice, he ultimately goes his own way. Nobody should be running your life except for you, not your best friend, not your parents, not your culture, not your society, and certainly not me. Only YOU can hear the voice that already lives inside of you. That voice within knows what’s best for you. If it has been awhile since you have listened to that voice, it may be a little difficult to hear it again. It does not matter if that is the case, do not be discouraged. That inner voice is just like a neglected lover; you can coax it out of hiding by encouraging it to speak up while listening with patience.

3. You Are Following Your Passions - Personally, I am doing it so balls out now-a-days that it makes me tear up a little just thinking about it! You know all the things that you tell yourself you would do if you had $10 million in the bank, if you were born into a different family, if you just had the right social circle to help you with it?  It’s time to just go ahead and start chasing those dreams, despite your financial, familial, and social standings! Passionate people are addictive to be around. Their positive energy seems to spill over into the lives of those around them; it is intoxicating and exhilarating to be so close to such passion. And you will know that you are truly living if you become one of those people that others are naturally drawn to because you are passionately chasing your dream.

4. You Are Afraid - People ask me all the time how I do it. How do I travel, go to school, rock an online business, and follow my passions with complete disregard for failure? The truth is, I don’t even feel like I can do it. I’m frequently riddled with self-doubt, hesitation, and anxiety like every other human in the world, but I’m still doing it. The main difference between people I know who are successful in life (in love, in a thriving social circle, with financially stability, etc.) and those who are not, is the successful ones act on their passions in spite of their fear. It is not that they are not fearful, because they are, they just don’t let their fear stop them. They might think, “This could hurt like hell,” or “I really don’t know if this will work,” but then they TRY it anyway. They are different than the unsuccessful people who think those same things and allow their fear and insecurities to stop them from attempting great things. Don't worry, this used to be me until I learned better. You of course, are in the former camp. Although life can be downright terrifying sometimes, you are still out there giving it your all. Yeah, I'm talking about you!

5. You Are Making Mistakes - If you are truly living, your life at times feels like a big pile of mistakes, and trust me, that is a good thing! Your success consists of glued together pieces of your failures. If you feel stuck or unfulfilled in your life right now, it’s probably because you aren’t making enough decisions (which result in more failures) in your life. Do you want to live more?  First, make more decisions, and then embrace and learn from the mistakes you are bound to make. Hear me clearly, I am not saying you are bound to fail. To say such a thing would immediately discredit me as an encourager of the heart. I am saying that you are bound to make mistakes, and if you learn from them, you will eventually succeed.

Live your life as fully and as robustly as you can, follow your passion, and don't be afraid to make your own decision which will absolutely lead to your own mistakes. As long as you learn from all of this, you will be better for it in every aspect of your life...