“When you’re young, your whole life is about the pursuit of fun. Then, you grow up and learn to be cautious. You could break a bone or a heart. You look before you leap and sometimes you don’t leap at all because there’s not always someone there to catch you. And in life, there’s no safety net. When did it stop being fun and start being scary?” – Sex And The City
For the past over fifty years, I have learned and unlearned a lot of life lessons. I’m grateful that I have managed to live till today to share with you my own life experience and tips from some of those wonderful books I have read.
There are many things which we have to grapple with as we strive to make the most of the only life we have now. Here are ten life lessons which can be a guiding light as you grope your way through life.
1. I have learned that life is indeed “Too Soon Old, Too Late Smart”, just like the title of the best-selling book by Dr Linvingston. Remember, you don’t grow old gradually and by the time you have wised up, you are too old. No doubt experience makes us wiser, but time defeats us.
2. Focus on learning rather than judging. Learn by questioning. The right questions will lead us to where we want to go. Ask and you shall receive.
3. Life is a gift with an unknown expiration date. In other words, enjoy the gift while you can. Get rid of excuses, get a life now.
4. Life is only moments, not tomorrows and yesterdays. Don’t put things off. You will live to regret. As Abraham Lincoln said: “It’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.”. I should have known this earlier.
5. Accept changes and learn to adapt to what’s going on with your body and your life.
6. We are what we do, and not just what we think or say. It is all in the doing which determine the outcome. Just do it.
7. Our children don’t own us anything. It was our decision to bring them into this world. So it is our duty and responsiblity to raise them. Our obligation to help them without the sense of unending gartitude.
8. I have learned that our life is shaped by both pleasure and pain. Pleasure can motivate us to achieve our wildest dreams and pain can make us to avoid the unpleasant happenings or outcome.
9. One important life lessons is what Anthony Robins has said: “It is our decisons and not conditions which determine our destiny.” I agree with that quote. We always conveniently blame the conditions and other excuses, than making a decison and act on it.
10. I have learned that time doesn’t heal. Only by letting it go and forgiveness. The anger or the pain of the past will linger on, if you don’t have the courage to let go. [image]