Skip to main content

I follow Tew on this one


“Respect yourself enough to walk away from anything that no longer serves you, grows you, or makes you happy.”

Robert Tew

When i first read this quote i thought, yes! I agree and of course this is how we should all be. It's the only way to really achieve that happiness factor that we crave as human beings, but when we look at everyday decision making in reality, can we really say we have all done this to the nth degree? Chosen to leave a job as soon as it got tiresome and less rewarding or did we stick it out to get that promotion we thought was well deserved after however many hours, months or even years of effort went into it. Can we honestly agree that every relationship we have been in has served us well, or made us grow for that matter? 

I think not. 

It's sad to admit but the decisions we make in life don't often involve our own happiness as a first basic instinct. We tend to rationalise and within a capitalist society we try to balance things and think hard about what we are doing and why we are doing it, but often it isn't because it will achieve ultimate happiness. Yes, it may be the goal we all hope for, but i've always wondered why it isn't the absolute first choice which dictates our decision. Why does the decision which may bring us some happiness always come with a side of unpleasantness that we put up with? It's a compromise that we consciously make and live with everyday. I just wonder why we do it so freely and sometimes too quickly.

It's true we can't be happy all of the time, but we should at the very least strive for this feeling to always take precedence over other variables, surely.

After thinking about it in relation to my own life choices i have made a conscious decision to focus more on happiness and what i want to do that allows this feeling to prevail as the clear winner in this mixed bag of emotions and experiences. You can call it selfish or self centred but i believe it's a healthy step in the right direction.

I believe if i had thought this way sooner and started analysing everything in a way that puts me and my happiness at the forefront i may have left partners sooner in the realisation that they weren't right for me or quit a job as soon as it was no longer fulfilling any of my needs. 

Naturally we all come to a point where we start to value happiness a little more (it comes with age and life experience) and we start to draw the lines of what we can handle and what gets too overbearing in day to day cycles. Eventually it all comes to a head and when it does get too much and some days get tougher the others you should take a step back and ask yourself, have i set happiness as a high priority here? If the answer is no, then it may be time to move on.

If this was a perfect world in my head i imagine my priority list of 'things to achieve' would go something like this:

1. Be happy 
2. Invest in the people that make you happy so that you may enjoy your life with them
3. Make lots of money (which supports item number 1)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Is that cash, credit or slavings?

Once upon a time, when i worked in retail i was caught up in the whirlwind that involved trying to balance my part time earnings (while i studied) with my never ending spending. Time and time again i had to ask people at the cash register the same question of how they would part with their money to purchase their new found clothing. Would they be paying with cash, credit card or a savings account. For many it seemed credit was the most viable option, which i never understood as i believe it's the equivalent of spending money you don't have so you have no business in spending it anyway, but each to their own i suppose. Finally one customer came to make his purchase and i asked that famous question: "Will that be cash, credit or savings?" He answered with a sigh, "don't you mean slavings?!" I laughed back and thought how right he was. I guess for some people it really does feel that way. It made me think, in a way he was right. Aren't...
2 comments
Read more

Experience everything

"When you lose, don't lose the lesson". - Anonymous To lead a full life with no regrets is probably my biggest wish; that and being happy in general. But life isn't always that kind and with the happy times will come occasional shades of grey and perhaps a few thunderstorms that mess things up for you really badly. Those periods where you lose and things don't work out exactly as you had hoped, no matter how much you tried or wanted them to work in your favour, are the times we would run from if we had a choice. Or at least i would - my brain works on a more flight not fight mechanism. This anonymous quote above reminds me (and i hope it will remind you too) that although we don't always win in life; there are always things to be learnt from living the experiences we do so that we can become stronger individuals in the future. The lessons we learn along the road of both good and bad life events are what makes us the person we are today. So think of tho...
Post a Comment
Read more

How to make decisions

Indecisive? Don't worry you are not the only one. Many of us fall victim to the lack of certainty when concerning various aspects of our lives. Whether it is to pick a life partner, choose a career path or order lunch, it sometimes feels like an overwhelming abundance of choice that results in our inability to pick just one of the options. Below are my tips for getting you through the confusion: 1)    Weigh up how you would feel about this decision if you were a parent or an older version of yourself. 2)    Would you be proud to admit that you did it? If the answer is yes, then go ahead with your plan. 3)    What do the hoards say and what do your closest friends say? Try to blur out the masses and listen to those that know you best. They will steer you in the right direction.
Post a Comment
Read more