Life can be hard. Each day has a million things to take care of and it’s easy to fall behind. However, sometimes life is hard because we are making it that way ourselves. We humans are funny creatures.
When things are hard, sometimes we make them harder just to feel like we have some control. If you think you’re making your life harder than it has to be, read on for 4 ways you might be doing so.
You Ascribe Malicious Intent
Most of the time people don’t mean to inconvenience you or make your life harder. The person who cut you off in traffic was in a hurry. Your significant other didn’t talk to you as much this morning because they were tired, not because of anything you did.
If we decide the world is out to get us, we make life harder than it has to be. Be very slow to ascribe malicious intent. It usually just makes you angry and unpleasant. The truth behind someone’s intentions is usually far from malicious and often not personal at all.
You Maintain Unreasonable Expectations
“When I hear somebody say ‘Life is hard’, I am always tempted to ask ‘Compared to what?‘” Sydney J. Harris.
It is often the case that the one thing we can control about life is our expectations. That doesn’t mean that we should go through life expecting and getting nothing. It means we don’t necessarily expect the glass to be half full, half empty, or even a little full. Expect the glass to be empty and then be grateful when it has some wine!
It is too often that we expect the world rather than practice gratefulness for what we have.
You Are Afraid of Risks
As humans we avoid risks by nature. We don’t want to run into danger unless we know we can get out of it. However, our bubble of comfort can often become a prison. We need to risk social rejection, loss of money, and loss of time in order to make our lives better. When we spend most of our time avoiding risks, we make life harder than it has to be.
Of course, you shouldn’t go out there and run into traffic. Take smart risks! Think of an area in your life you’d like to expand upon and set some short terms goals. Once you’ve challenged yourself and become comfortable again, set some higher goals!
You Compare Yourself to Others
One of the most toxic things about modern social media is that it allows us to constantly compare ourselves to others. Even worse, we compare ourselves to others in only their best moments. It’s easy for some to make their life look glamorous on Instagram because people don’t see what happens when the camera turns off.
You can take solace in the fact that your friends probably don’t have it as good as they’d like you to think. However, there will always be someone with more money, more friends, or whatever else than you. Their life should not concern you! The only person you should compare yourself to is the version of you from the past. Look how far you’ve come!
In short, we need to worry less about others, less about risks, and maintain our expectations. If we go through life trying to be other people, thinking the world is out to get us, afraid to take a chance, and expecting things to get better without changing our actions… we are setting ourselves up for failure.
So, stop making life harder than it needs to be!
Looking for a coach to help you stop making life harder than it needs be for yourself? I can help! Check out my affordable coaching packages to help get you out of your moment of chaos and onto a clear path to getting things back on track to normal. Contact me today.