When I was younger I was so passionate about my physic and strength that I devoted 5 to 6 hours a week in the gym. I used to exercise 5 to 6 days a week.
I was single, no real responsibilities other than paying my rent and bills. I felt empty, I was broke and I had no real skills. I used to work as a dishwasher, busser, waiter, labor and other basic jobs.
In addition I was ignorant about many subjects and I had no purpose in life.
Even though I was exercising, I was doing it to look good and to be strong. However, I was eating unhealthy and because of that I was not healthy. All I wanted was to look good.
Like I mentioned, I had no responsibilities and worries, but something inside me told me that I was in the wrong path...
Later an event happened in my life that changed all my perceptions about life. Overnight, I understood that I was on this planet to serve others. But I could not serve others if I did not know how to take care of myself.
And surviving in this life does mean taking care of me. First I needed to find happiness and love myself and be in a good situation to be able to serve others. It is like trying to save someone who is drowning. I can only save the person if I know how to swim and I am in a position to save the person. If I don’t know how to swim or I am drowning myself, there is no way I can help the other person.
Anyway, it came to the point that I hit rock bottom...
Thanks to that I learned a lot. And one of those things I learned is that I needed to set up goals to progress in life. You may know about goal setting, but here are a couple things that helped me progress in life you may need to add to your skills.
1. Divide your life in areas to set goals. You need to know where you are with God, your family, your health, your finances, your mind and emotions and your relations. That way you can work in the areas you are failing.
This is especially important because if you are good in one area all you have to do is maintain it and focus on other areas. For example, if you have a united family because you are a great dad and husband, but your health is bad, then you know you need to work on your health.
2. Define your goals and be specific. You need to know what you would achieve when you meet your goals. For example, if your plan is to lose weight, then don’t say, “I want to lose weight.” Right down how many pounds you are losing and why it is important for you.
3. Choose three areas in your life where you are not doing good and set goals and continue maintaining the other areas...
Once again, you are good with your family; continue doing all you do to keep your family together. But know you must open time to work in the other areas that are important to you. Don’t say there is no time because you can stop scrolling on the phone, watching TV, wasting time sleeping more than you are supposed to or you can hire someone to do the small task that takes your time, so you can work on yourself.
So if you need to work on paying your debt, in losing weight and get closer to God, then set three yearly goals. Now, to get there you need to practice some behaviors that must get you to your goal. Let’s set goals. Goal one-By the end of this year I have paid half of the debt I have which is $50,000. Goal two- I am 40 pounds lighter by the end of this year. Goal three- I have read the first 4 books of the bible, read books that explain God and open 20 minutes every day to connect with God.
Remember that you need to stop doing things that are not contributing to these goals...
but continue doing the other behaviors that are helping you with the other areas of your life. For example, for your first goal you need to stop buying useless things, canceling some memberships such as Amazon premium, Netflix, Cable TV, maybe sell an extra car you have, stop eating out, walk to close places instead of driving to save gas and so on. For your second goal stop eating junk food, eating in fast food restaurants, start exercising, learn about diet, exercise and how medication does contribute to weight gain. And for your third goal, reading every day, taking time alone 30 minutes a day, going to church once a week, understanding others and giving money or time to others.
Lose weight...
Now you are progressing in life and not letting your life fall apart. Plus, you are losing weight and staying healthy. If you categorize your life and set three big goals a year, you can focus on working on them every day to improve your life.
I did it myself. It has been years since my life has been balanced thanks to these skills. I am at peace and I feel full. I want to think that I am closer to God than before. I am happily married with a bay coming and I get along with my family. My health is good. I don’t suffer from any debilitating and chronic disease. Plus, I am in the best shape of my life now that I am 40. Money is not an issue for me because I learned how to manage and invest money. I have learned how to control my emotions and thoughts and understand human behavior which serves me to be a better person and I have only friends who want me to succeed and they are there for me as I am here to help them.