The theme of 2018 has been “living my best life”. This is a great motto, and makes a great hashtag! I for sure want to live my best life, and maybe I’m close, but I am not there yet; and I’m concerned that majority of us aren’t either. We will all define best life differently, but what does this truly mean? Is it connected to money? Careers? Vacations? Family? Being authentic? Probably all of the above. And maybe this is also tied to our goals? I’m assuming those living their “best lives” have reached their desired goals? Or maybe just the pursuit of these goals defines us living our best life. I personally still have goals to reach, and although I am enjoying the journey and am grateful, I feel I am not at my best life yet. I’m living a grateful life, and I know that the best is yet to come! But this is less about me, my goals, and how I define “best life”. And more about this intuition that something is still missing in regard to this motto. In no way do I want to minimize your desire to show off your “best life”, and thrive within that life. But I question if we are living a fulfilling life? What makes you feel fulfilled and what gives you purpose? It is very possible to live our best life, but to not live a fulfilled life. It’s when we can reach our true purpose and feel fulfilled is when our best lives can emerge.
Social media is filled with best life posts and hashtags. But those are simply snapshots of great moments; but are these moments transcending into more areas of our lives? The answer may actually be yes for some of us, I am not writing to say otherwise, I am simply creating space for reflection! My fear, and the reality because I’ve experienced this within the work that I do; is that we are simply creating this ideal of a best life, that may not actually exist. But in a quick snapshot and post, we can disguise this. And some of us are not disguising, we are truly living our best life, but forgetting to connect to those most important to us. We continue to live in a disconnected society, where we may be living our best life, but our neighbors, and even our best friends; are struggling to make it through their days. We can find fulfillment in our lives when we are able to reach out to others, touch the lives of others, inspire others, and help others. Of course we cannot save the world, but are we even helping those close to us? Are we making an impact in other ways that could lead to a more fulfilling life? A life based less on the evaluations of others, and more on a genuine connection to others.
Reach your goals, travel, play, and live life based on your terms-these are definitely musts and allow us to live our best life! But remember to find fulfillment in the life that you are living. When we feel fulfilled-we truly can live our best life. I am continuing to work toward my best life, and want to help others live theirs as well! On a final note: It is OKAY if you’re not living your #bestlife right now, or if it does not look like someone else’s. Do not compare the status of your life to others, nor feel your life is inferior to others. Believe that you can always create the life you desire and most importantly, the life that you DESERVE!!