The Best Ways To Navigate Life Starting Today!
Looking back over the years, the only way you learned to cook, clean, or work was from being hands on. Others have taught you how to do the basics, but your personal experiences are what has brought you to where you are now. The most difficult part of being an adult is perfecting life skills that deal with emotions. How best to deal with other personalities, how to be emotionally strong, and how to navigate this thing called life.
Let us look at the top ten essential life skills that can make you feel your best mentally:
Saying No Without Feeling Guilty
Most people are guilty of this one. With multiple requests for your time, it becomes harder to say no as to appease all parties. However, over time, this leads to you being the only one with burnout.
Instead of feeling like you must give an excuse when saying no, leave it generic. If your sister has called for you to come fix the kitchen sink again, explain that your time is valuable. While you understand she is struggling, you can offer a video call to walk her through the process of fixing it herself. She learns a new skill and you learn to balance your time.
Accepting Criticism With Grace
This is a learned skill. It is in our human nature to react to negative information. We show it by changes on our faces, body language and often with our tone of voices. By keeping our demeanor calm and accepting, this dissolves the personal aspect.
If the boss wants to have a talk with you, keep yourself poised and honest. Explain any misunderstandings and assure a corrected path will be taken. Do not think that a mistake at work is a reflection on you as a person.
Accept The Consequences
It can be hard to accept defeat. We feel we can conquer all tasks if there was just more time in the day. The reality is the body and mind need rest and healthy fuel to keep moving forward. The days of staying out till three a.m. and heading into work the next morning without consequences are long gone.
When you make a mistake, such as running late to work cause your alarm did not go off, be graceful on any punishments. If this requires a few extra hours after work to catch up, learn from the err and move on.
Practice More Face-To-Face Conversations
While texting and e-mail are a great form of communication, they both lack emotion. By having that in person contact, this gives you a chance to implement your empathy skills, reliability, and openness.
Call up an old friend and ask to meet for lunch. Be engaging to the conversation and respectful of their presence. Put away any electronics and stay focused. This assures them of your reliance and trustworthiness.
Keep A Good Work Ethic
During older adolescent years, first jobs start to be a part of daily schedules. They become a must to pay bills, eat and play. While adults collectively have shown they change careers every four years, it is the road behind you that will follow your work history.
Treat your job with respect. Do your best to be on time, complete all your work, and remain open to changes. Show management that you are a team player. Always remember that your job is not who you are, only what you do.
Separate Yourself From The Emotion
When learning to navigate life changes, emotions tend to rise to the top, leaving exhaustion and frustration behind. While it is widely acceptable to experience a range of sensations, it is not acceptable to act upon them. Instead, see the problem as it is, not how it makes you feel.
Let us say you found a perfect home on the market. You send out an offer, only to discover that it had been sold a few hours prior. The emotions could span from tears to defeat. Acknowledge the loss and keep looking. Remain focused on the goal.
Double Check Yourself With A List
When it comes to household necessities, the idea of going shopping at your leisure is often not doable. Trying to remember everyone’s tastes is almost impossible. Instead of causing more anxiety over missed items and long visits to the store, try writing it down.
Make a weekly list for each member of the household can contribute to. Before going to the store, put each item in a category (meats, dairy, produce). This not only will keep you on a schedule but stop you from purchasing unneeded goodies.
Ask For Help When Needed
Many tasks are often achievable by oneself, but there are times when one person cannot do it alone. From the urgent project at work, to the maintenance of your home. While it can be difficult to ask for assistance, the benefits outweigh the reluctance.
Your boss just handed you a thick file that needs to be entered into the computer system within two days. Instead of trying to push yourself to complete the job on your own, ask a co-worker to help you complete the task. Not only are you using teamwork but utilizing others assistance for balance.
Learning To Cope With Changes
While most people can cope with small intermittent changes in their day, when it comes to major life decisions, their responses are unsure of the next step.
A good way to start is gathering all important paperwork and securing it in a locked box. This will give the comfort of having your affairs in order in case of an emergency. If the change is foreseen, take extra time out for yourself. Get good sleep and eat healthy. Keep your mind from wandering by engaging in quiet hobbies. Each of these pro-active actions will help you make a reasonable and promising change.
Choose Contentment In Your Life
While it is impossible to control others around you when it comes to their emotions and actions, the one person you can control is you. It would be easy to give into every altercation we encounter throughout the day, but the aftermath is only exhaustion. By remaining calm and open during heated exchanges, you show no malice and honesty.
The next time you find yourself in this scenario, keep your voice low and body language relaxed. Remembering that this is not personal. Express your thoughts with true information and remove yourself from the situation. By limiting your time with them, this gives others a chance to re-think their argument and consequences. Be proud of yourself for walking away.
In Conclusion
Using each of these skills will begin to open new opportunities and help you choose stronger paths when making life decisions. Remind yourself often on why you feel good about your own actions and emotions. Now go out there and keep living. As automaker Henry Ford once said, “Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again. This time, more intelligently.”
