Caught up in our own lives, sometimes we forget to look around and see what’s going on around us. People who we are close with could be struggling and we don’t even see it until it gets to be a big problem.
This fast-paced world we are in right now comes with pressure to be successful, achieve great things, and work to make something of our lives so we can show everyone how well we are doing. It’s a lot to deal with.
It’s probably safe to assume that many people around you are struggling. Acknowledge that you have those challenging moments too.
It is rare to find someone who is content with who they are and what they have. It doesn’t even seem to be a goal anymore. Forty years ago when you got a job, you likely stayed at that company for the rest of your working life. Pensions were decent and there wasn’t a lot of desire to move around too much for a majority of people.
That kind of complacency and security doesn’t exist as much anymore.
The reality of the workplace today is that we are likely to have many jobs with different companies over the years. While the ability to stay in one place still exists, it is more common to have to move about. Permanent and dependable has become temporary and flexible.
A desire to have changing opportunities has replaced the need to have stability in many cases. The fear of missing out on an opportunity or the feeling that something else will be better than what we already have drives much of this movement from place to place.
None of this is good or bad, it just reflects the way things are now. More than ever before, we see what other people are doing and feel that better opportunities could be available somewhere else.
Sometimes they are, sometimes they aren’t.
The internet has changed our lives forever. Being able to look at what others have and the things they are doing has made us unsettled, filling us with the desire to be more, to have more, and to do more.
It’s the reality of life for the younger generation. The pressure to be noticed and admired by others has set up a difficult environment for many.
More than ever, we are feeling that we aren’t enough anymore. This is creating stress and anxiety that can lead to an unhealthy lifestyle.
Living in modern society, it’s safe to assume that the people around you are more stressed than they admit. This stress is manifesting on a physical level, with the majority of people needing to take some kind of prescription medication to deal with symptoms of this unease.
It’s filtered down to our children. It’s not uncommon anymore for kids to be prescribed something to help them deal with anxiety and stress.
Is this what progress has led to? Wasn’t everything supposed to get easier with modern technology and all of the advances of recent years?
It might be time for us to slow down a bit. There is nothing about the outside world that you can control, but you do have the ability to take care of what is going on inside.
Living faster isn’t living better. Rushing around to get more and do more isn’t the same as having a quality of life that is enjoyable. Contentment isn’t found by going faster to get somewhere that isn’t going to be where you want to stay anyways.
Tune in and see how you feel. Notice when you are overwhelmed, rushed, annoyed and stressed about getting somewhere or doing something. These feelings affect how your body functions and it isn’t a positive thing.
Slow down and look around. Remember what is important to you. While looking around, see who else might be struggling too.
Then reach back. Get yourself into a better space, then help others to get there too. Help each other.
Reconnect with the values that are important to you and stop trying to do it all. Contentment is a goal worth pursuing and you don’t need to get anything or go anywhere to find it.
It’s already who we are, but sometimes we forget to allow it.