10 Keys To Living Your Best Life

10 Keys To Living

Your Best Life

by M.K. Allison

Several months ago, I came across some great tips by the motivational speaker, Anthony Robbins, which offered a new perspective on living your best life that I found transforming in my own life.

1. Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.  Last year, at Christmas time, when I pulled the name of a longtime enemy out of the grab bag at work, I decided to exceed the $15.00 gift rule and gave her a $25 cash card.  When she opened the card, and came over and hugged me, I knew our feuding days were over, and I felt wonderful.   Later, she became my best ally at work.
2. Hook up with a man/woman you love to talk to.  I love to converse. Last year, I finally stopped accepting quiet on a guy as exotic.  If he doesn’t have good conversational skills, I can no longer hang.  To me, a soulmate means being with someone I can speak my heart to, and he responds in accord.
3. Don’t believe all you hear, or spend all you have.  When I read this, I realized how gullible I’d been in listening to other people.  Just because someone makes a statement that sounds like a fact doesn’t make it true.  I also learned that I felt better when I spent my money wisely, which meant I had to totally cut down on frivolous spending, which meant not buying stuff on sale I didn’t need for the sake of acquiring and eating out when I should be cooking my own meals..
4. Don’t move forward in any situation if you have doubts.  This principle was a little late for me.  I met and married my husband after four weeks, and I was plagued with doubt and knots in my stomach.  Of course, I lived to regret it.  The marriage lasted two months.  But I’m smarter now.  I pay close attention to my gut.
5. Love deeply and passionately.  You might get hurt, but it’s the only way to live completely.  This does not mean throwing your feelings, emotions, and dignity at the feet of some undeserving soul.  It means to give love your best when you’re given a real reason to.  Don’t hold back out of fear.
6. Talk slowly, but think quickly. This really resounded with me, because I have a tendency to speak before I think.  I found that whenever I applied this principle, my words felt more intelligent and I felt more adult about what came out of my mouth.  It’s called “processing.”
7. Take charge of what you want to respond to. ” Through the years, I’ve been caught off guard by intrusive questions and ended up answering what I didn’t want to answer. I discovered that I cared more about offending the person who asked, than my own discomfort.  I feel liberated whenever I use this principle. Either I ignore the question or state I don’t wish to answer.
8. Remember, that great love and great achievements involve great risk.  I am finally straight on the point that pride is a dream blocker, and can shut the good out of your life, and I have finally learned to stop playing it safe when the potential result could be good.
9. When you lose, don’t lose the lesson.  This applies to every facet of life and is an important step toward growth.  I no longer look at the loss of anything as a loss.   I look for the good part/lesson from the experience or what I gained from it.
10. When you realize you’ve made a mistake, take immediate steps to admit it and correct it.  This act alone sets you apart and adds height to your stature as a real adult.  The first time I admitted I made a mistake that my boss was blaming someone else she gained a new respect for me, and later promoted me.  She said it was because she had a deep appreciation for my integrity.