How to Live Out Loud
Did you ever stop and wonder if your life is hurtling past you while you just hang on trying not to fall off, rather than you consciously creating a life that is full of happiness and joy?
Having just returned from an absolutely wonderful weekend in Panama City, FL where my wife and I attended the wedding of one of my closest friends, I have had the chance to give some serious forward-looking as well as retrospective thought to life in general, and posting those thoughts for the benefit of my readers immediately came to mind.
My desire is for everyone to enjoy life on this planet as much as possible and in as many ways as possible. The phrase "live out loud" popped into my head, and I saw that as a great way to describe a life that is consciously created to be full of fun and frivolity. Here are some tips on doing exactly that!
Smile and Laugh Often
Although the concept of laughter being good for us in nothing new, that hasn't stopped people from consistently taking life WAY too seriously! None of us is getting out of life alive, so why would you squander the opportunity to have a good time while you're here?
Yes, you've got issues. Financial considerations, personal demons to battle, family problems, health concerns, career considerations, blah, blah, blah. So does everyone else.
If you sit around waiting for all of your "stuff" to be handled before you can start laughing and smiling all day, you'll be laying on your death bed wishing that you had spent more time laughing and smiling.
Each of us is an individual and we choose what we want to do with our lives. However, in addition to choosing a direction for your life, you can exert that same free will on a daily basis in your home, your place of business, out in public, and when visiting others.
Yes, you should consider the needs of others as a general rule, but that does not mean that you are here for the sole purpose of serving others! Quite to the contrary, actually - you're job here on earth is to serve yourself. You are here to learn and have fun.
If you spend your entire life - or even an entire day - not doing what you truly want to do, then refer once again to what I said earlier about what you'll be saying on your death bed.
You can try to foresee all of the different things that may be a part of your experience in life, but no matter how hard you try, unexpected things are still going to happen. For many people, this is a huge part of the reason why they are not enjoying their lives as much as they could be.
Whenever something happens that is outside of a person's "plan," they tend to immediately focus on trying to find a way to deal with this bump in the road. Dealing with the bump is not the issue, however.
The issue is that whenever someone comes upon one of these bumps in the road, what they consistently forget is that they still need to focus on being happy and having fun. In a world that offers a lot of negativity and plenty of opportunities for stress, our "default mode" is one of being negative and stressed out.
Consciously creating a life of living out loud means exactly that - consciously creating. If you stop focusing on being happy, you can probably guess what will happen to your level of happiness. When something unexpected happens, deal with it from a position of power, and then keep on cruising along being happy and creating joy.
After something unexpected happens in your life, that is a prime opportunity for you to ask "What was the value in that experience?". Every experience has something to offer, although it is not always as obvious as other times.
For example, if someone that you care about almost dies, it is hard to see the value in that. However, as you quickly realize that you now have a better appreciation for that person still being alive, it becomes apparent that there was some value in that situation after all.
Every single experience in life fits into that same mold, so I will not pass out endless examples here. However, trust in the fact that no matter how bad something may seem, not only does that thing have some sort of value, but in most cases it will also help you to live a happy and joyful life.
Refer back to the example of almost losing someone that you care about and you will see an immediate opportunity to start enjoying your life more by spending more of it with that person.
I saved this one for last because I feel that it is the very cornerstone of happiness. There are many people who define happiness by material possessions, certain experiences, various opportunities, etc. However, each of those things will only hold value for that person based on that person's 100% unique view of the world.
So, by trying to serve the "greater good," or by living your life by standards that have been set down by anyone other than yourself, you are just setting yourself up to live a life that you don't truly want to be living.
The only way to truly enjoy life is to be the person that you actually want to be! Your friends, family, co-workers, mentors, counselors, and advisers cannot tell you to be - or not to be - a certain type of person. Their input can be incredibly valuable and I certainly advise seeking guidance from anyone who has an opinion that you respect. However, when all is said and done, you are the only person who is qualified to decide if you actually want to listen to them.
At this time you have the opportunity to give yourself a little "pop-quiz" to see if you are on the right track to start Living out Loud:
- Are you going to nod your head and say that this blog post makes some great sense, run around for the next few hours feeling inspired, give some serious thought to creating the life that you truly want to be living, and then follow those thoughts up with some consistent action?
- Or, are you going to let all of this go in one ear and out the other because you are already late for some task that you need to accomplish, and you just don't have time for this mamby-pamby, feel good nonsense?
The choice, of course, is yours. However, I believe that in a day, a month, a year, and a decade, the people who chose option number one are going to have lived a far better life than the people who chose option number 2!
