As a young woman in today's world, I'm constantly being sucked into modern society through various forms of media. Now, I'm not saying all of society's influences are bad, but I am saying that some can have a negative effect on me, as well as other young men and women. That being said, I try my hardest to ignore some of these influences and be my own person. I'm also trying to better that person daily, no matter the circumstances. In order to better who I am, I've been following a couple guidelines that I wanted to share. Here are a couple things I've worked on recently in order to become a better human:
1. Produce less waste.
Believe it or not, there is a way to produce very minimal amounts of trash as a single human. I met a girl this year at school who taught me a lot about it, and since then, my roommate and I have been more aware and cautious about how much we waste, recycling better and how we spend our money.
There are some people in the world who nearly don't have a carbon footprint. There are some people who can fit all of the trash they have produced within a year or two into a single jar. It's incredible, and we can follow in their footsteps in order to better care for our planet. Now, I'm not saying you should just stop producing trash all at once, because that's completely impractical and extremely difficult. But I am saying that you could try to cut down on some things. For example, you could try just using a single glass or recyclable bottle to drink out of wherever you go, or to simply buy reusable grocery bags and actually use them. It can also be something as simple as not using a straw when don't necessarily need one. It starts with simpler things, and then we can continue to waste less and less as we learn more and more.
2. Be alone more.
When I say be alone, I mean it. Be alone. This means by yourself, with no distractions. Close the door and leave your electronics on the other side. When we're alone, we're given the opportunity to meditate, pray, reflect, breathe, etc. All of these things help us to acknowledge who we have and haven't been interacting with and how we've been acting among those people recently. It allows us to process our previous days, acknowledge where we could've done better and how we can change our bad habits. On the opposite side of this, alone time can allow us to look at the positive parts of our past. It can also allow us time to acknowledge how far we've come and our accomplishments in life, which can help us to build up our self-esteem.
Next to acknowledging our faults and accomplishments, reflecting on our lives can help us to appreciate our days more. When we look back on our days, we understand better how fast they go by. Because of this, we can learn to enjoy our time on earth more. We can also allow our minds to wander to the future, or set goals and dreams for ourselves.
Making it a point to be with yourself is often difficult, because we get so caught up in our busy lives. But its definitely worth it. Set aside an hour of any day and make sure you're alone with no distractions. Read a book, cook yourself a nice meal or just sit and listen to music. Time to recharge is needed and worth it.
3. Educate yourself.
At times, the world is an incredibly scary, traumatizing place. There's so many things going on across the globe within politics, wars and natural disasters. But, there are also so many inspiring, joyful things happening in the world. For example, there are so many people working within non-profits and new inventions that better the earth are being created. In all of these situations, there's so much to learn about, and it's our job as humans on this earth to educate ourselves. Our world is such a beautiful yet delicate place, and we need to start showing our love for it. So, next time you're on your computer, do some research about a topic that interests you or that you're confused about. It won't hurt you to learn about current topics.
4. Live in the service of others.
We can't spend our whole life looking for acceptance and approval from others. We shouldn't be living in order to satisfy others in a way that they dictate what decisions we make and paths we decide to follow. Instead, we should be living to please others in a way that makes their lives better. In other words, we should be living in the service of others. Our lives should be dedicated to putting others first. Mother Teresa once said, "Faith in action is love, and love in action is service." So really all that service is, is love. When you're living in the service of others, all it takes is different acts of love. When we love others, we're serving them. Simply loving others allows us to be better humans.
5. BWYFA.
BWYFA means "Be Where Your Feet Are." It's as simple as it sounds: Just be present. It's so difficult these days to be distracted by social media, what's happening next weekend or that 10-page paper you have to do before Monday. But when we're in the presence of loved ones or in important situations, there's no point in focusing on those things. All that matters at that exact moment is in front of you, so why focus on anything outside of that moment? Try your hardest to actually be present in all situations that you are in, and your life will become so much more meaningful and fulfilling.
