Every night before sleep, I sit on the edge of bed and softly vocalize my triumphs and missteps of the past day. It’s a discipline that I’ve developed over time and one that always served me well. It’s always straight from my heart in an earnest mishmash of atonement, gratitude, and prayer.

I believe that our words have spirit and I feel more empowered when I say voice my inner-most thoughts aloud. It’s personal and life-affirming. I’m always honest with myself and able to see my faults and find ways that I can be better. It’s self-awareness in its purest form. It’s a time to be real with myself, consider the day's accomplishments, and above all else practice gratitude.

My nightly affirmation is a ritual that keeps me honest and accountable to myself and connected with the energy of the universe. I’ve taken my ego away from the process so that I can be true to myself.

I tell myself that I did my best that day and vow to do better the next. I say this aloud with conviction. I mean what I say and will do what I promise. This is a mindset that any of us can develop. It’s state of awareness that we can do anything as long as we believe in ourselves and focus on intention.

I’m not religious in any way and feel no call to a higher power or source of judgment. There are only two choices in life, right and wrong.  I know in my subconscious and intuition that only I can be the savior of myself. I have to hold myself to a higher purpose in order to be authentic with myself.

Being our best, is the feeling we get when our energy is focused on the universe that tells us that we can always do better. It’s a belief in who we are and what we’re capable of. It’s an inventory of faults and lapses of judgment. It’s life-affirming and exciting!.

Being our best is a mindset that allows us to look forward to the future with both enthusiasm and a sense of adventure. We never know what each day can hold but we can live in the freedom that comes when we have confidence to meet life’s challenges.

Why not take life on with a yearning to be our best and live in a state where happiness is normal and not to be feared?

Every one of us faces adversity, crisis, and often unknown personal horrors that can defy logic or explanation. Somehow we live through them and never really understand why; other than that, we survived.

We can never know what to expect from one minute to another and must be ready for anything. For some of us this causes much anxiety and stress but for others these are the times that define us in our quest to find meaning and growth. We can always take the greatest obstacles as an opportunity to be better no matter life’s challenges. Happiness may seem far away, but there’s always a light inside.

One of the greatest mindset shifts in my life was the awareness that being my best is the only option that I can take in life. This attitude helps us to uncover new opportunities and choices in life. It’s not about being better than anyone else or feeding a monstrous ego. Rather it’s the functionality of knowing that we’re capable of setting our minds to anything that we believe in. It’s knowing that we can be confident in our ability to learn, adapt, and process information. It’s the key to a happy life in a rapidly changing world.

Some of us are able to dance through our lives in harmony with our spirit. Others are fearful and mindlessly live their lives in a false sense of safety and security. Life has a way of setting things right to remind us that we are human. Not making a choice is the same as choosing. We can choose to label ourselves as failures in times of trial and adversity, or we can use these events to rise and triumph.

We can be our best ever day and tell ourselves that we will do better tomorrow. We can be our best ever in a never-ending cycle. We can create change in our lives and adapt to our circumstances. Mindset and attitude are our compass in life. Why not choose the right direction and realize our potential and live our authentic lives?

THE PAST IS A LESSON NOT A CURSE

There was a time in my life when I was down and in a very dark place. I knew in my heart that I would rise someday and find the light again, but it was complicated. I had a lot of emotional baggage. Years of an abusive relationship had taken its toll. Eventually I moved on and found that I was stronger than ever but didn’t really know myself. Who I was a mystery and one that I wanted to find out. My once fast and reckless life had come to a standstill. I was all alone and ready to learn who I was from life’s painful lessons. The past is a prison as I told myself. The here and now is all that matters.

I looked back at my early life that was so full of promise and vowed to turn my life around. I lived in a state of gratitude for my resilience and appreciate the choices that became abundant. I listened to the universe and felt my connection once again. I made a simple vow and began to think of myself as a warrior. Life has no excuses that matter and all that counts is that we do our best.

WE ARE THE PRODUCT OF OUR ENVIRONMENT

So many of us are trapped in a mindset that we are part of our environment and societal paradigm. We use words of disparagement and hatred to divide us, and we often fail to see the bigger picture of life. We get trapped in the emotions and fears of the people around us and it can be hard to see a way out. Guilt and shame are too often the end result.

We will never reach our full potential if we succumb to false security of this narrative. People who are different are always singled out. Take note and listen, these are the leaders for the future. These are the people we someday won’t be able to live without. They are authentic and believe in their intentions. They live in an authentic state of being their best inside and out.

If this resonates just a little, here are the questions to ask:

1.       Where do you spend the most time and why? Does it make you feel happy?

2.       Who are the people you spend the most time with? Do they make you feel happy?

3.       What are the habits and routines that make you feel healthy and rejuvenated? Do you feel happy doing them?

4.       What do you do to lift others up?

5.       Do you care about the quality of your productivity? Why does this matter or not matter to you?

These questions require us to dig deep and be honest with ourselves. They can provide us with the clarity needed to find the best parts of who we are and use them to better our lives. To create more personal peace and inner happiness.

Remember:

At any point in time, we always have the knowledge and power to be better!

We have the power to create lives with the wisdom that comes from past mistakes.

At any moment we can choose to be better. We know how it’s just a matter of self-belief and doing!

We learn and thrive from every event in our lives.

As humans we are imperfect

As The Happiness Warrior, I believe that it’s through deep inner work and self-awareness that we create an effective sense of who we are. We achieve-inner awareness that allows us to forgive and rise once again. It creates a place where we can feel authentic and empowered. It’s the formula for reinventing our lives and becoming fully actualized. It’s how we get to truly know ourselves. The process is natural and purifying. It helps us to get rid of negative and unwarranted self-created fears and emotions. It helps to set things right in the world around us. It helps us to become happier and more confident versions of ourselves.

Being better helps us make a difference in the world around us. We hold ourselves accountable, we forgive ourselves more readily, and we learn from everything we do. It creates a core value that helps us navigate through the journey of life. Make the right choice and choose to be your best!

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