Lifestyle “Guru” Tony Robbins says that most people “Major in Minor things.” In other words, we focus most of our energy on actions and activities that have no positive impact on our lives.  The typical “gossip” that leads to nothing, the constant distraction of social media or the excessive consumption of television have no other purpose than to keep our minds entertained, or distracted.

Our time in this world is limited https://www.arielgavilan.com/2020/05/12/money-cant-buy-me-love-or-time/. Therefore, it makes sense to make the best of it if we want to have a positive impact on our lives, the lives of our family and the overall community. So where should we focus our energy? Below are some ideas that might be of help.

THE VEHICLE:

The body is an essential priority of a “well lived” life. And I am not referring to the body from a hedonistic – narcissistic point of view, but rather as an instrument to live our lives. The body is the vehicle that allows us to channel our energy to achieve our goals. When we are sick or hurt, our attention is basically focused on healing.  It is a vital survival instinct that prevents us from fully focusing on our projects or relationships. We can think that health is like happiness or vice versa:  we do not properly value it until we lose it. It is worth investing in it, preventively, so that this vehicle can take us to a good destination. 

THE GOAL:

If the body is the vehicle, it is our mind that determines where we are going. The mind is of substantial importance in establishing the most appropriate and productive direction for our lives. Clear mind = clear goals. If the mind is confused, tangled, or distressed, we tend to go down unproductive, dead-end paths or spin in to vicious circles that lead to nothing. A clear mind sets clear goals and helps identify the shortest and most effective ways to achieve them. As the Greek philosophers used to say: Know thyself. This maxim is difficult to achieve in day to day life filled with work and obligations. However, the global pandemic gives us the opportunity – and the time – to pause and look inside. Whether through introspective techniques of meditation, relaxation, breathing control or psychotherapeutic techniques, it worth to train our minds to be calmer and to change the “automatic” parameters of thought that sabotage us and the “toxic” monologues that condemn us to failure even before beginning. Our internal dialogue is a precursor of our external achievements.

THE FUEL:

We have already identified two central elements for living a good life: caring for the body and our health – our vehicle – and control and training of our mind to establish clear goals and strategize how to achieve them. The last component of this equation is the fuel. Where does that vital energy come from that drives us day after day to pursue our goals and achieve them despite the obstacles and challenges? Our fuel is called desire. In this sense, it is truly important to know what our own desire is, despite the wishes of parents, spouses and friends.  Many times we surrender to social pressure and our desire is not truly ours: we become doctors because it is what our parents expect of us, we play soccer because it is what our circle of friends values or we diet to look like the model that is in vogue. While this may give us an initial push we might run out of motivation midway.  A more powerful  and long-lasting fuel, but also more difficult to find, is to identify and discover our own desire. For this, we will have to drill deeper and have an honest conversation with ourselves. It will take more time, but, at the end of the day, it will provide a lasting fuel for the rest of our day.

Body, mind and desire are three key elements to optimize our life journey.