“There’s an infinite amount of work. The big question is what do I have to do today, this week, this month, this quarter?” — Christine Comaford-Lynch

We have all most likely done it more than once in our life. We decide to sacrifice lunch with a friend or figure it’s not that important to get that sleep you so desperately needed. Or what about the classic, “Sure I can do that” when you already have a full agenda… and that new task isn’t even in line with your personal goals.

What would you gain with those choices? There will always be more work tomorrow. This doesn’t mean you should slack off. It is all about real life balance though. And what “real life” balance means, is that things don’t have to be perfect. There may have to be a slight lean on your table when one leg tends to take more attention than the other three at times. It means that you shift and adjust.

But you need to remember that it is supposed to be about joy. It’s supposed to lead you to your happiness. And if somewhere along the road that you find yourself now traveling you realize that you are no longer heading in the right direction, you need to make some real life changes.

And remember, it’s ok to say “no thanks”. It’s ok to say “Hey, this isn’t what I want to be doing now”. “This is not taking me to my joy, my goal, my passion.” Breathe, and get back on track — YOUR track.

“The power to create quality of life is not in any planner. The power to create quality of life is within us, in our ability to develop and use our own inner-compass so that we can act with integrity in the moment of choice.”
— Stephen Covey

What will happen tomorrow? Or the next day? Or the next week, month, year? Other than some fairly predictable norms in my life, I wouldn’t be able to answer that with much detail or accuracy because I simply cannot know about something that has not yet happened. And what about all the things that are going to happen that I can’t even imagine at this present moment? How will they affect the equation when I didn’t put them into my calculations?

So why do we take up so much of our time thinking, or worse yet, worrying about the future when we have no way to know for certain what it will entail?

No matter how challenging your situation appears to you at this time, you can make it through one day at a time. Focus on the present day and moment and what action steps you can take right now. Understand that each conscious choice you make now will create the quality of life upon which you decide.

“If you don’t like something, change it; if you can’t change it, change the way you think about it.”
— Mary Engelbreit

As I progress through my journey of life, I am coming to a big realization about a small thing — life is very much about our attitudes. Happiness, misery, strength, weakness are all about attitude. The funny part is they all require more or less the same amount of work on our part and we actually have the power to determine everyday which way it will go.

I have even heard some people state that life is 10% of what happens to us and 90% of how we react to it all. That would mean it is vital to be in control of our attitudes and our choices that we make. How we see a certain situation or person depends on what we look for in it or them. Seek out the positive and you will find it. If you don’t like what you see, then change the way you look at it or think about it.

“Nothing can bring you peace but yourself.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

For every situation that comes into your life you have a choice. You may not have as much direct control over whether the situation arrives at your door, but you have absolute control over how you open the door and greet it — how you choose to react to the situation.

Drama is a subjective reality; for one the death of a loved one can be a painful experience. To another, it is but a reminder that life is short and it is a time to live more fully with love and peace. Others might even see it as a time to rejoice in seeing their soul move on to a higher level of consciousness. One situation — many choice reactions.

And as much as accepting drama in your life is a choice, so too is allowing peace to reign in your daily decisions and reactions.