Making a positive difference

Easter, Christmas, Labour weekend…

There are a bunch of holidays sprinkled throughout the year. Religious holidays, in particular, give many people pause time to think about their own good fortune. So many in the world have so little. No matter which, if any, faith we follow, we can all be thankful.

I’d rather be struggling to make ends meet each month HERE than live in a place dominated by the noise, stress and madness of war. One of the reasons I became a life coach was because a long-held dilemma burned within me. It was in the form of a question: ‘Is this as good as it gets?’ I had a great job, a house – albeit with a small mortgage, sure I was divorced but I had the privilege of having my daughter live with me [plenty of challenges there!], but I was not personally content. I was going through the motions on a daily basis without any real direction. You know how it is; you get up, go to work, do your work, come home, cook a meal, maybe watch some TV, and go to bed. Same old cycle five days a week. Weekends were largely structured around household chores and tidying up the yard prior to repeating another five-day cycle. Trouble is, I had no idea what kind of career or calling I wanted, so I stayed stuck. Until one day I asked a ‘life coach’.

There’s no doubt I have not earned as much as I would have in my previous corporate world, but I am much more content. I get great satisfaction from helping others make their own breakthroughs for the better. I don’t get satisfaction from seeing the miserable conditions many clients have to endure. However, the best I can do for me, and the best you can do for yourself, is to ensure we look after ourselves first. We need to be fed, watered, housed, be well and feel reasonably safe. Only then can we be in a position to help others. We help others one at a time.

Making a positive difference is what life is about. It’s largely what we are designed to do. It’s one of the reasons why the self-help field is one of the largest and most active markets online. Multitudes of people just like you are looking for answers. Some are nurtured by their faith in a religion. Many more find other ways – or they are still seeking other ways. I have also learned to be more tolerant as I get older. My partner, in particular, has taught me that ‘my way’ is not necessarily the right way or the best way to approach life’s issues. I have discovered that it’s OK for this to be. Learning to let go is one of the best things we can do.

Being grateful and giving in to another person’s opinion is not a sign of weakness, but a sign of moral strength. Build your home and work relationships and ‘life muscles’ with this in mind!

-Phil Linklater, Tutor, Life Coaching. Reproduced for educational purposes.