We all need reminders. Dripping faucets remind us of needed repairs. We set calendar alarms that remind us of appointments. We use alarm clocks to tell us it’s time to get up. We have automated to-do lists to keep us on task. Reminders are a way of life.
Because living your why is a new concept, your mind wants to push it to the background and keep doing things the way they have always been done. Therefore, you need some reminders to live your why. Here are three things that can keep you on the right path moving in the right direction.
- Check your mood. As a new week begins, what are your emotions? Are you already living for the upcoming weekend? Do you have a sense of dread? Do you expect this week to look a lot like last week and the week before that? Those are reminders to live your why. Complacency is minimized when you pursue your purpose in life. Don’t squander the 168 hours you have this week. Use them to make a difference.
- Check your focus. Living your why will refocus your life on the needs of others. If you discover that you are more focused on you than others, you aren’t living your why. Your natural tendency is to be self-focused, therefore, pursuing your why will take you out of your comfort zone. Pay attention to the tension and keep pressing toward your why.
- Check your influence. Everyone is influential. You influence the bank teller, coworkers, family members, neighbors, casual acquaintances, barista, grocery clerk, and so forth. Your influence might not be positive in every situation. Take a minute to imagine what it’s like to encounter you. Are you having a positive effect on others? If not, you might not be living your why.
Don’t let living your why go the way of other things you’ve tried and abandoned. Your why has the potential to radically change the rest of your life. Don’t give up. If you don’t live your why, who will? Think about it.
What reminds you that you need to live your why?
