Want To Bring More Joy Into Your Life? Learn the Art of Not Taking Things So Damn Seriously

The most joyful people are often those who don’t take themselves so seriously.

Yet, as we get older, life begins to feel more serious. Not only do we have increasingly more decisions to make on a daily basis, but the consequences of those decisions also have greater ramifications.

The outcomes of our decisions create one of two feelings:

• Pride (if a decision creates positive impact)
• Shame (if a decision has negative ripple effects)

If decisions were standalone events, they would have less gravity. But because of the potential magnitude of the aftermath (especially when children or others are involved) we begin to associate the outcome of our decisions with being either a good or bad person.

Because we make decisions constantly, you can see how life becomes seriousness. So how do we invite playfulness back in?

We have to learn not to take ourselves so seriously. How?

#1 Realize we’re all human

“Being human means you will make mistakes. And you will make mistakes, because failure is God’s way of moving you in another direction.”
-Oprah Winfrey

Every choice you make comes from a very human place. And each one brings you closer to where you ultimately hope to be.

#2 There actually are no mistakes

“The only real mistake the one from which we learn nothing.”
-Henry Ford

Realistically, there is no avoiding making decisions that will have a negative impact. But when we learn from that experience, it’s not a mistake. Rather, it’s a lesson that can be carried as wisdom into future decision making.

#3 Our decisions do not define us

“No choice we make lasts our whole life. If there’s ever a choice you’ve made that you no longer agree with, you can make another choice.”
-Johnathan Mulberry

Choices made don’t define who we are, but rather the state we were in at the time it was made. Try to understand from a compassionate place where your decisions come. And know that you’re always trying your best in every moment given the tools and mindset you have. (We always are.)

Knowing this, we can live from a less serious and more lighthearted place. Decision making becomes less heavy. And we allow our eternal childlike innocence to be known, bringing joy back with it.

Read this post and more on my Typeshare Social Blog