There are moments in life when we re-evaluate our decisions and realize how terribly we have messed up. Sometimes you feel like you have lost control of your life and cannot seem to get back on track. Fear not; this is a positive sign. Realizing that something needs to be done is the first step to making it right.
When you want to return the reins of your life to your hands, it is time to plan and implement a strategy. You need strong willpower and planning to get back onto a productive and satisfying routine. People often feel like they’ve reached rock bottom and everything is falling apart, but they will soon bounce back on their own.
It is all about how determined you are and go about things. If you are looking for a way to get back on track with your personal life, you are in the right place. The following are some very useful tips to help you do just that:
1. Thoroughly assess your life
Of course, before you begin to set things right, you must know what is wrong in the first place. You need a detailed life audit to help you take stock of your daily activities and identify what you must correct.
Begin by evaluating what things take up your time, mental energy, physical energy, and space. Evaluate each aspect of your life, from your relationships to bad habits. The goal is to identify problems.
For instance, you might be facing issues with substance use that could escalate to addiction. Firstly, understanding the terminology is important; substance use is a milder form of alcohol or drug use that causes distress and has the potential to lead to addiction which is a much more serious problem. When going over the various aspects of your life, consider all such habits that are counter-productive and could cause more serious problems shortly.
When making this assessment, it is a good idea to develop a diagram, a flow chart, or a wheel of life.
2. Develop acceptance
When life seems to be in shambles, it is easier to deny the problem and let it wreak more havoc. This is a terrible way of handling a problem and will only lead to more difficulties. It is time you accept it and decide to do something about it. Simply expecting and faking positivity all the time is a very unrealistic and dangerous strategy that our western culture has pushed us to.
Only with acceptance can you do something about the problem; however, this also doesn’t mean you just bemoan your fate and lose all motivation. Be honest towards yourself, consider the problem, thoroughly contemplate the situation that led up to the issue, and then work towards making it better.
3. Prioritize
At the moment, you may have trillions of problems listed down after the life audit, and it must surely seem daunting to handle them all. Prioritize. Some things are always more important and need more immediate attention than others. When you prioritize, you can get all things done in time, pay attention to urgent tasks, be more productive, and be less likely to waste time and energy.
If you have just been kicked out of your rental home, don’t have a job, and your kids aren’t enrolled in a school, decide what needs to be tackled first.
Of course, finding a home must be a top priority, so other things must take a back seat. When you prioritize, leave behind other problems while you deal with urgent ones. It is no help to keep worrying about the other while you struggle with the first.
4. Take responsibility for what happened
Unless you take some responsibility for what went wrong, you will always feel like these setbacks are out of your control and will be able to do nothing about them. It is often not true that we have nothing to do with the things that happen to us and are completely free of blame.
Taking responsibility for your life’s happenings is a part of a personality style referred to as having an ‘internal locus of control.’ With an internal locus of control, you believe you have some part in your experiences and take responsibility for these happenings.
Having an internal locus of control is good because it strengthens your belief in having control over your life, improves decision-making processes, boosts self-efficacy, and leads to better achievement.
So if you just got fired, instead of blaming it on your manager, consider whether you had something to do with it. If your kids don’t have a strong bond with you, what role do you have in it? This mindset will help you make positive changes and recover from setbacks.
5. Work on time management
Time management is a skill that helps in all walks of life but is difficult to master; not everyone can do it successfully. However, once you know how to, it will make many things much easier. Managing your time effectively is of key importance when you have lots of stuff to do.
We often waste lots of time doing nothing, spend more than necessary time on unimportant and trivial tasks, and then have no time left or have to rush through the big things. When you use good time management skills, you will always be on top of things or ahead of schedule, improve your productivity, and be much less stressed out.
So, how can this skill be mastered? First of all, prioritization is crucial. Remember to set smaller goals rather than aiming for the entire thing, be focused when on task, minimize all distractions, and carefully monitor your daily progress.
Final words
Change is never easy, and you will inevitably face hurdles, but it is also entirely possible when you are motivated and keep bouncing back. To start, your quest to bring your life back on track might bring many challenges, but if you keep at it, you will see positive results. Begin by assessing your life thoroughly. Then develop acceptance, prioritize, assume responsibility, and polish your time-management skills. In the long run, these techniques will help you stay on track, make the best of every minute, achieve your goals, and be satisfied with yourself.