Life! It's a lot of fun but it can also be challenging. Things don't always go our way. Life can let us down and can sometimes fail to deliver what we were hoping for. That's just the way it is. But sometimes the problems that trouble us are the ones that we create in our own minds so maybe it's time to stop blaming other people, bad luck, the weather, our football team or whatever, and look to ourselves. Here are a few simple tips we can use to instantly change the way we live for the better.
1 'My life's a mess. I just wish I could disappear'; 'Why do these things always happen to me?'; 'If only someone understood me'. Thoughts like these help no one. Overdramatising a situation only makes it worse. Try and put things into perspective a little, take a step back, sleep on it, ask a friend for help. Things are rarely as bad as they seem.
2 So your teacher didn't give you the part in the school play that you really wanted and that you tried your hardest for at the audition. Well, that's a shame – things don't always work out the way we'd like them to, but it doesn't mean your teacher doesn't like you. Maybe there were other students who were more suited to the role. Similarly, when your football team loses, they don't lose just to upset you. Maybe they didn't play very well. Things go wrong for a million and one different reasons. It's not all about you.
3 Not all teachers are the enemy. Not all adults are out of touch. Not all younger brothers and sisters are annoying. Try not to look at people so simplistically. Everyone is an individual. Open your mind to other possibilities. Get to know people as individuals, they might surprise you.
4 Do you sometimes snap at your parents just because
they've asked you to tidy your room or to do your
homework? Just because you feel angry, it doesn't mean
they're being unreasonable. Maybe you're tired or
hungry. Maybe other problems with school or friends are
getting in the way of you thinking clearly. Maybe you're
overreacting. It's good to feel but it's important to take
a step back before you act on those feelings.
5 No one gets it right all of the time, and that includes you! So don't expect life to always work out the way you think it should. If others let you down, be kind to them. If you're not living up to your own expectations, be kind to yourself. If you're always looking for perfection in others, you're sure to be disappointed.
6 Don't dwell on the past. There's no point thinking 'If
only I'd studied harder for that test' or 'I wish I hadn't
said those things to my parents'. You didn't study and
you failed. You said those things and you got into
trouble. There's nothing you can do to change any of
that. Learn from it, and make sure you don't make the
same mistakes again.
So there you go. Keep these tips in mind and next time life doesn't go exactly the way you want it to, try and use one or two. It's time to take control of your life.
