Are you taking yourself too seriously? Life is a game. Gone are the days of worrying about survival. If you are reading this, you likely aren’t worried about where your next meal is coming from. You know you have a place to take shelter each night. So we are past the survival level of the hierarchy of needs. So why do people often make so many things seem like a life or death situation? Some people just thrive on the drama and want to make everything a big deal. Social media, the news, and entertainment thrive on drama and excitement. They are competing to grab your attention. In our world, there are thousands of things competing for your attention every day, so the drama is more likely to win. It plays into your lizard brain of survival. “I have to watch the news so they can tell me about the threats that might harm me.” “I have to follow these trendsetters on social media, so I know how to look to fit in and then I will have a tribe to accept me and protect me.” Those are the thoughts of the lizard brain.
Take the time to look at where you give your attention. Are you filling your life with images and stories that make you take yourself too seriously? Do you feed off of drama and gossip? Does the news cycle make you anxious? Are the people in your life bringing you peace or suffering? Could a little editing of where you give your attention help you stop taking everything so seriously? Where can you add more fun in your life? What can you stop doing that doesn’t make a big difference?
So what would happen if we started to take everything in life a little less serious? What if we looked at life as a game, and we could make up the rules? My life right now is all about finding ways to shift my perspective. When I shift my thinking, then I generally see positive changes in my life. I decided that losing those last 10 pounds was going to be easy, it didn’t have to happen quickly, and I could make it fun. A week later I found a 3-week meditation series that is helping me slowly shed a little weight each week without changing my diet or exercise. I try to laugh more often when working out instead of trying to make every squat perfect or hit a certain number of reps each round. I make exercise more about moving my body and loving how much stronger I feel each day. I don’t have to have a set date to hit that target weight, because I will get there when the time is right. I’m just enjoying the journey. When things are fun, you are more likely to stick to it!
As kids, we were full of wonder and could make anything fun! It’s still possible. You just have to try a little harder and get past the BS rules in our society that tell us to take everything seriously. We have the power to choose. It might sound ridiculous to laugh every time something goes wrong and embrace a new challenge, but you can teach yourself to do just that. Why not approach each challenge with a punch of positive energy so you can make a better choice on how to resolve it?
You can also choose to not do anything. There will be consequences of course, but you have the free will to choose what you do. So feel empowered to make those choices, and also decide to choose to take things less serious. The more you learn to feel empowered, the more likely you are to take time and choose your response instead of just react. It’s 100% possible to create a life that is fun and feels like a game. You create it with your thoughts and actions each day. It’s seriously a good choice to step back and see where you can make life more fun. It might sound ridiculous to laugh every time something goes wrong and embrace a new challenge, but you can teach yourself to do just that. Why not approach each challenge with a punch of postive energy so you can make a better choice on how to resolve it?
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