Gemmas Little World

Image via Pixabay

When we’re kids, we all dream and set goals about achieving great things in life, being “at the top of our game” at all times, and just generally leaving our mark on the world in a way that makes us, and the people we care about, proud.

Unfortunately, as we get older and actually begin to contend with the world of higher education, work, and adult responsibilities, it’s all too common that we find ourselves being sidetracked down avenues that aren’t especially breathtaking or inspiring.

To some extent, this happens to all of us. That is — no matter how generally great your life may be. There will be periods where you find yourself in a slump, and really want to change direction and get onto a better and more empowered path.

There are many things that people can, and do, try in order to help set themselves back on track when they feel that their lives have gone down a bad track. Taking out a loan with a guarantor loans, for example, may help to absorb some of the financial hardship. And angling for a raise at work may serve the same purpose.

The thing is, a lot of the troubles we tend to face are not just financial. But are connected to our fundamental goals, sense of self-belief, and overall life perspective.

Here are some reasons why you shouldn’t allow yourself to become despondent, no matter how bad things seem to be. Instead, you should dust yourself off, set some goals, and turn over a new leaf.

You have not tried everything yet – and who knows what unexplored paths might yield success?

If you find yourself feeling helpless and hopeless in life, ask yourself one simple question: do you believe that you really tried everything that you could possibly have tried, yet, in order to move things in a better direction?

The honest answer, no matter who you are, and no matter what your circumstances are, is going to be “no.”

It’s a big world out there, and there are an endless number of different things each of us can do. If you find that you are heading in a direction in life that you don’t want to head in. Or are already at a destination you do not want to be at – that’s a sign that it’s time to try something that you haven’t tried before.

The thing about unexplored paths in your life, is that they are certainly going to be scary and intimidating. But also hold out the promise of the incredible potential that you likely haven’t even begun to comprehend.

There’s no knowing where success hides in your life, and how great that success can be, until you dedicate yourself to the courageous pursuit of adventure, and find out firsthand.

Moving towards a goal you care about can transform your life for the better. Even if you don’t fully accomplish the goal

People sometimes put off setting themselves ambitious goals. This is because they believe that those goals are too lofty, and can never be achieved.

For one thing, this fear underestimates what the focused human spirit can achieve. For another thing, you don’t actually need to achieve a goal in order to benefit from having one.

In life, a major degree of the satisfaction and benefit we are likely to enjoy, is going to come as a result of moving towards. Also, actively pursuing, things that we consider worthwhile. Or, put differently, “it’s about the journey, not the destination.”

If you need to rediscover your sense of self worth. The belief that you are capable of achieving great things, then the first step should be to set yourself a worthwhile and motivating goal. Then to do what you can to progress towards it. With every little bit of success along the road, your life will take on new significance and meaning.

It’s always possible to make your life better – even if by small increments

When you’re in a genuinely bad situation in life, it can be incredibly daunting to try and improve things. After all, if everything is a wreck, the very idea that you could set things into perfect order is likely to seem like laughable fantasy.

This is where it’s important to remember the old quote attributed to Lao Tzu; “the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”

No matter how bad your situation in life may be, and no matter how much work it may take to make things hypothetically “perfect,” there are always certain things you can do. Right here, and right now – to make things better, overall. Even if just by small increments.

In fact, when you’re in an undesirable position in life, striving to improve things little bit by little bit. That is often the absolute best path forward. Start by vacuuming the house and creating a personal budget. Then, do at least one or two things every day to make things just a tiny bit better in some sense.

You can really “become a different person” through practice

You might have convinced yourself that you are just “the kind of person” who is always going to underperform and fail to progress positively in life.

In one sense, our psychological personality traits seem to be pretty consistent across the span of our lives. In another sense, though, you can actually “become a different person” in quite a literal way, through practice.

The neuroscientist Norman Doidge points out in his book, “The Brain That Changes Itself,”. That the habits and behaviour patterns we engage in throughout our lives actually change the structure of our brains over time.

This means that, if you routinely behave in ways you don’t like, you have “shaped” your brain to be more likely to follow out those paths of action. But, it also means that with practice and diligence. That you can reshape your brain to make you into the kind of person who does the opposite and sets goals.

That means there is always hope for self reinvention.