Take it easy – Day 46/139

Is your life thriving or are you just surviving?

Here is a quick test:

• Does going to work on Mondays bring about negative feelings?
• Are your thoughts already on the weekend on Fridays?
• Are your biggest expectations for the future in your next holiday?
• Do you feel you have to work just pay the rent/mortgage?

If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, there is a good chance you are not living your life but merely trying to survive it. And yes, most people are just trying to survive. The good thing is that if we want our life to thrive, there is an easy way out.

Just relax.

People that are not under stress have superior performance to the people who are. In an interview yesterday the Finnish figure skater Kiira Korpi answered a question about her poor performance in the World Championship. She had reached perfect results during the practice sessions but failed in the actual contest. Her explanation was that she was nervous.

In most sports all the athletes on the World Championship level have the technical skills to win. Everyone trains a lot so there is a limited benefit to training more than others. I will argue that the winner is determined by the athletes’ state of mind. How could you be nervous if you feel the joy in your sport and forget the competition?

Whatever you do, your state of mind is a big part of the success.

Try to feel relaxed in the things you do. If you can’t, you’re probably doing wrong things just to survive.