29 jun Life is EASY,

And if for some reason you think otherwise, I strongly recommend you to not read any further. But if you are willing to figure out why we tend to make life so difficult, please stay! As you might know, I deliver ‘friendly reminders’ on a weekly basis and it’s Wednesday again .. So here’s another one:

Do NOT complicate things in life

What do you do when you miss someone? What do you do when you wanna meet up with someone? What do you do when you have questions? When you want something? Well, the simple answers are: call, invite, ask or chase it.

Swept away by distractions

We fill up our lives and therefore leave no room to reflect. Jay Shetty claims that those distractions become our values bij default. More often people are buried in nonessentials and so they loose track of what is truly significant. How often do you hear yourself say: “I should have”. First question: “What distraction(s) could you remove today .. So that you could use the energy, time or focus on what matters most?”

But what is life, other than a series of carefully considered compromises

Well I’m definitely not saying that’s NOT true. All I’m saying is that it fascinates me that an entire world can be confined to a small place such as an office. I’m fascinated by the fact that people are actually tucked away in ivory towers .. Because all I want is to be out in the world. I’m writing this article in New York City and I’ve already talked to a bunch of friends who pointed out to me that it’s so difficult to take time off. Oh and obviously I’m surrounded by ivory towers so this article fits my current situation.

Settled into a routine,

Which obviously is important. A routine can be very fulfilling or necessary. But if you hear yourself thinking: “The company I work for needs me. What would they do without me. I need to pay the bills. My wife or husband isn’t working so that’s why I have to.” .. Then I suggest you to give up searching for someone or something to blame for your present circumstances, just only for today.

The areas where you spend the most time should match what you value the most

When was the last time you paid attention to the sound and feel of the water when you washed your hands? To the scent of soap, the movement of your hands and so on. Eckhart Tolle defines paying attention to the sense of perceptions associated with any activity as ‘being’, being present. Because our drifting awareness creates a void. So uhm, good luck with washing your hands in slowmotion, as delicately as possible .. An easy step to being present. Just see what happens, ok?

“What’s your priority?”

A question randomly asked by an elderly Italian man. He guided me through his world of thoughts and told me that he had worked his entire life, like all of us .. And that the loss of his mother brought him sadness, tears but also a moment of pause. In that particular moment he had asked himself the following question: “What do I think is important for ME”, spoken with an Italian accent. I could tell that he was on the path of enlightenment. Reflecting on his needs, his values, his experiences, .. He took his time to figure out what mattered most, while at certain moments he was melancholic about the past. All he wanted was to align with happiness and Dalai Lama helped him with it. He bought the book: ‘The art of happiness’, and read it. All I observed was a pure willingness to embrace inner change.

Moments like these are so interesting,

“The sense of freedom that comes from letting go of self-identification with one’s personal history and life-situation”, a sentence I once read. How do you actually identify yourself? And what matters to you most? Are you able to answer these questions? What mattered most to the Italian man was: cooking, Parmesan cheese, reading, cycling, photography and red wine.

I guess all I want to say is, don’t wait for time to speed up on you or for the loss of one of your parents.

Live NOW