In the previous lesson, you learned how to create effective goals that align with your purpose and vision.
In this lesson, and as we work toward living our best life and creating an amazing 12 months, I want to share the top 3 things that matter most throughout your journey.
When you think about creating your best year ever, it's all about living a life that counts.
It's all about investing your time and energy in making a difference in the life of others so that you are fulfilled in every area of your life.
And it's also all about improving yourself, getting the most out of yourself by continuously working on your mindset and your own personal growth, so that you can grow into the person you want to become and bring your dreams to reality.
In accomplishing all of that, there are 3 things that matter most. 3 things that we need to keep in the forefront of our mind as we go through each day.
The Experiences That We Come Across
Whether positive or negative, we are shaped by the important experiences we encounter as we go through this journey we call life.
The experiences we go through – building a new career, starting a new business, failing in business, starting a family, going through a tragedy… Every experience is an opportunity for growth.
The reason these experiences matter so much is because… Some may be challenging; some may be exciting; some may be fun; some may not be fun. But no matter the experience, the circumstance… it's not so much that in itself, but rather how we respond to it – what we take away – and how we leverage the opportunity for growth.
Are you taking the experiences that you're going through and turning them into knowledge, wisdom, and understanding?
Are you taking your positive/joyful experiences and rejoicing in them, enjoying every moment? Living in the moment? There is so much that we go through, and a lot of times we forget to soak it all in or to consider the lesson.
The Decisions That You Make
I've heard it said that life is all about making decisions… and there is a lot of truth to that.
Everything, from the smallest decisions… like what you're going to have for lunch today, to the biggest decisions that change your life forever – like choosing a particular career… it's all about the choices we have and the path we choose to follow.
But more importantly, it's about making good decisions. One of my mentors, John Maxwell, says, "the secret of your success is determined by your daily agenda". If you make good decisions and manage them on your daily agenda, you will succeed.
It's not about making easy or cheap or popular decisions – it's about making the right decisions. In your attitude, in your priorities, in your health, in your relationships, in your finances, in your thinking. In every area of your life.
What do you see as the critical areas in your life and what decisions are you making every day to improve in those areas? This is one of the things that matter most when it comes to creating your best year ever.
The decisions you make on a daily basis have a lasting impact on your life. They create our circumstances; they determine our day, our week, our month, our year. You make decisions, and decisions make you.
Whether you think the decision has an immediate effect or not, you are shaping your future every single day, by the decisions you are making in the present. Today, you are the sum of the choices you've made in the past.
And the beautiful thing about that is that, if you're not happy with something, at any point… starting right now, you can start to make different choices.
The 3 Things That Matter Most
In lesson 5, you heard me say that everything we do is based on relationships and interacting with others. The relationships we create, the people we surround ourselves with – our inner circle, and even the people we come across every day… All those relationships can have a significant impact on our lives and the person we become.
Those experiences that matter most, those decisions that matter most, most of the time, they have to do with us… but many times, they also have to do with those around us and our relationships.
When we conversate or interact with others, we exchange ideas and emotions, and we exchange energy – whether positive or negative energy… Some of it is with like-minded people… people who inspire us or people that we inspire or that we lead.
And some of it is with people who drain our energy and suck a little bit of life out of us… Those are the ones we need to be careful of. Sometimes we may not be able to choose who those people are – but we can always choose who we allow getting close to us, in our inner circle.
Now, in addition to guarding your inner circle and keeping negative people out… one of the most important principles in relationships, is the relationship you have with yourself. The person you're going to spend the most time with is you.
So working on your self-confidence, your self-belief, your self-worth… This is what matters most. The more you like and respect yourself, you more you like and respect others. And the more you like and respect others, the more they like and respect you.
It starts with you, so make sure the "self" is taken care of, constantly work on self-improvement, and then pour value into others, and understand that the person you are and the way you treat others, is going to determine who you attract and who you keep around you.
These are the 3 things that matter most… the experiences we go through, the decisions we make, and the relationships we create. Keep those in mind as we put it all together in the next lesson and create our best year ever.
