Is your life out of control? Do you constantly feel overwhelmed and stressed out? Then you should conside simplifying! I know your thinking… “simplify, you must be out of your mind?” And you’re absolutely right. So lets take a few minutes to explore what can be a life changing blog.

Have you ever heard someone say, “life is crazy busy”? I know you have. Almost everyone you ask how they are doing, will say so. It is like a badge of honor, but what that tells me is life is spinning out of control and they are stressed out of their mind. Why do we do this to ourselves? We have no one to blame, but ourselves.

Our days can be very busy and full of activities such as, taking care of the home or yard, shuffling the kids to their activities, paying bills, projects at work, not to mention getting in a workout, just to name a few. No wonder we feel that life has become this perpetual rat race. This cycle of craziness leads to fatigue, low energy, frustration, unhappiness and potentially depression and anxiety. 

Consider the fact that antidepressant prescriptions have increased by 65% over the past fifteen years and 2 in every 10 Americans are taking these medications! These numbers are even worse for kids with over 800% increase this past decade! So what gives? Is there a sudden flaw in our genes causing a massive change to our brain chemistry? Not even close! In fact our genes have not change at all in nearly 40 thousands years. This is where you need to consider something different. 

Human beings are dopamine-seeking missiles. Dopamine is the brain chemical along with others that is produced when we exercise, eat chocolate, drink alcohol, have sex or any other behavior we do that feels good. We like the feeling dopamine produces, but if you’re not careful (especially for addictive personalities) it can be destructive. So how do we naturally tap into our dopamine? It starts by asking one simple question before each task, “what do I want to experience and how do I want to feel?” Even though there are times when we must take on tasks that perhaps aren’t our favorite things to do, we can choose to find the joy and fulfillment if we are willing to seek it. This is what being mindful means, intentionally choosing the emotions you want to experience. For me it is always joy.

Then we need to consider the tasks we take on. Ask yourself, “does this task move me closer or further away to my goals?” If your answer is further away, you still have choices. You can delegate, outsource or choose not to do the task. If you don’t like cleaning the house and wasting 4 hours on a Saturday then outsource and hire a service. If you don’t enjoy cutting the grass then delegate to it the kids. I promise they won’t melt and they will learn valuable lessons. And some things are just not worth doing at the sake of your own happiness. I can’t tell you what those things are or what category they fall in, you must decide that. However, you can decide to have very different experiences than the ones you are having. It’s always a CHOICE.

Live inspired, be abundant, and fulfill your destiny,