Ever felt like you need to do things your way because this is what makes you feel relaxed and comfortable? Well yes, but sometimes doing things our way can impact us negatively or affect other things in the way. There is a huge link between the things we do, the way we do them, and how healthy and happy our lives are. Would you rather be happier in life or would you rather just do things your own way?
Happiness does not mean that you do not get to do things your way, but doing things your own way could cause a lot of hassle and lack of comfort.
There is a great quote that says, “Don’t be afraid to wake away from things that don’t matter, because then you’ll have time for the things that do.” If you think carefully about this, it underlines one important message, and that is to look for the things that matter to you and engage in those, because the less important things will not be as beneficial or rewarding. Moreover, this definition of important things depends on each individual; there are things that are commonly important between all humans such as family, children, and work.
However, going into more depths, someone might find it important to play soccer to get better and be able to join an international tournament, while another person might think it would be wiser to use that time and practice playing the guitar to fulfill a dream. Therefore, it is your choice and call to label things important and others unimportant.
Going beyond just the simple meaning of the quote and prioritizing the important things, there is also the issue of doing things our own way. We always feel more relaxed and comfortable implementing our own methods and ways when doing anything in life. However, we need to start realizing that sometimes our ways might not be the best ways and that we could find or know of other ways that could be more effective and more useful.
Do not be stubborn or afraid to try new ways; for if we do not try, we will never know. Then that could cause us to miss out on some of the best opportunities of our lives perhaps.
One other important aspect or by-product we could be forgetting about when we are making the decision of sticking to our ways is happiness. Happiness is something everyone seeks in life with all the bumps and challenges faced. So try to put your stubbornness and tendency to stick to your own ways aside, and start looking at the bigger picture. Start evaluating what is important to you and the best ways to get there; to get to your destination.
Here are 7 reasons why you should stop doing things your way today:
1. It Just Does Not Work
Ever thought and had the deep belief that something will work out very well, but it ended up not working as you thought? It has happened to all of us, right? Well, this could be a good thing. It could be a sign that you need to explore other options and a good change of direction. How many times did we think we were heading to a dead end with the new way we learned just to realize that it was actually a good choice to change our ways?
Has it happened to you? Yes, stop being limited to your ways and remember that there is more than one way to go about most things. Learn to listen to others, gain more knowledge, and hopefully find new ways to go about things.
2. You Are Not Happy
Have you been longed in doing things in a certain way (your own way) and ended up not being happy? So you keep on trying harder and making small adjustments in your schedule and way to try to amount to something. However, what we do not notice sometimes is that we need to renovate our way; our way of thinking.
We could be tackling the issue or activity from the wrong point of view and need to replace our way altogether. Do not understand this incorrectly; this is not a call to unhappiness and more work, think of it as a way to increase your happiness, which will have a positive impact on your life; one you did not imagine.
Happiness is such an important aspect and quality we need in our lives and is something that is not easy to accomplish sometimes. However, if you remain positive and optimistic about things and are open minded; open to changing your ways and view of things.
3. You Want To Grow
Growing as a person is something that is important and that could take you a lot of ways. Growth and development comes through self-dependence and working on yourself. Are you someone that looks forward to expanding a brand, maybe an idea, or just yourself in life, or would you rather just “go with the flow” and see where life takes you? Well, it is always a good strategy to try to make use of every opportunity possible to grow and succeed more.
You have to be aware though that it is not going to be easy at all. It could take a lot of work to reach the place you want to be; it could start with changing your view of a specific thing or tackling tasks from a different view point. Start exploring various and different ways to approach something such that you are able to utilize the best strategy.
Let us look at an example. Let us say you want to become an Olympic caliber athlete; it is your dream career. So you are approaching this task in a certain way but this is not allowing you to fully grow. What do you need to do? Maybe you just need to make a slight adjustment in your schedule or maybe it is a major, drastic change. Whatever it is, you need to believe in what you are doing to the point where you are willing to try or do anything to achieve growth and success.
4. It Is Affecting Others Too
Are you a sociable, family oriented person? Or are you more into yourself and do not like to interact with others as often? Well, in both cases I am sure you have people you love and care for. This is because we humans are social animals; we cannot live without interacting with other people and helping out others, while receiving help from others too.
Are the decisions you are making well based and for the best of everyone? You might be unsure why I am asking about others. Well, it is known that the decisions we make affect us as individuals, but sometimes we forget that our choices could also affect others. So we might be satisfied with the way we are doing certain things in life, but we should also be aware of how these choices affect others. This could be a major reason why we need to change our way or habits.
Let us take an example. There are a lot of people that smoke nowadays and that are so embedded into this habit that is hard for them to quit. One more reason that could motivate them to quit is how others around them feel about this. Your loved ones could be really worried about your health and the negative impact smoking has on you. Even more than that, they could get irritated from the smoke smell inside the house and it could be time for you to change your way of releasing stress and relaxing.
There are many other ways we can get rid of stress present in our everyday lives. Instead of being the victim and rely on nicotine, you could take an early morning stroll to clear up your day in front of you. Furthermore, you could purchase a membership in a gym and start working hard to stay healthy and fit. One more thing you could that is not related to exercise is just relax on a beach in front of nature; just listening to the waves as they splash before you.
5. Not Tapping Your Full Potential
This topic is related to the idea of self-growth and success. On the topic of growth, you might know that there is a change you can make to achieve growth, but could be afraid to make the leap because you are unsure of whether or not it will work and be effective. However, here, you might not realize that there are areas where you can still grow and develop.
You could have this mentality that you have reached your maximum potential and you cannot go any further. So you could be doing things your own way and feeling relaxed and comfortable about that. However, what you might not be noticing is that you are falling short and that you could still do much more great things.
Again, do not be afraid to explore new options and explore un-walked grounds. There are areas which might seem untouched or unexplored, so be the first one to be there and rake the benefits. To do that you need to overcome the fears and obstacles in the way.
6. You Need To Conquer Your Fears
It could be very hard to conquer your fears, but the benefit found behind this act could be outstanding. All of us have fears, and one of those fears is the fear to move ahead; to make a change in your life. However, if we could only feel the joy and excitement of the results before we actually engaged in the change, it would make a difference. We need to try out the change in order to know how it is going to feel, so start making change.
7. Just Try A Change
Who would not like a change? Who would like to stick to the boring rhythm? Start exploring new ideas and situations, where you start enjoying the benefits and joy of such changes. Moreover, in the end, you will not lose anything if you try small changes in life. If you do not like the changes, you can always aim to go back to your original scheme.
If you keep examining, you will find that there are numerous reasons why you should stop doing things your way today. Can you see yourself doing things in a different way? Can you see yourself leaving behind a habit or a way of doing things that could be leaving you astray?
Well, go ahead and visualize a certain task you do regularly or something that you value a lot; something that is important to you. Imagine how doing this assignment or task differently could bring about happiness and cause you to finish it in a shorter amount of time. Something you might need to face to get to change your way of doing something is overcome the conflicts and obstacles within you and be strong enough and fearless to make a change and take action.
Giving up your way of doing something does not mean that you give up or quit on it at all. Things are not going to go your way every time and we need to accept this as a fact of life. If things do not work out properly, that just gives you permission to search for a way to add value to your life and move away from things that cause unhappiness or reduces quality.
Let us say you hang out with a few friends and have come to realize that they do not add any important value to your life and actually bring the bad out of you. What you do? Well, you probably have to go and find yourself new friends; friends that appreciate you and bring the best out of you when they are around and people that have common interests and common values.
Another example is sitting through a bad meeting or movie. Maybe you can try to find something positive about the movie, rather than just thinking of negativity and why you are not leaving. Start planning yourself goals and explore the best ways you can achieve those goals. Your way could be useful and the best for the situation; however, if things do not work out your way, do not give up.