In Your Best Life Now, the book basically talks about how one can reach its potential in life through a seven-step process. The book begins by addressing the importance of dreaming big, which was referred to as “enlarging your vision” and “raising your level of expectation”. From there the book moves on to explaining the value of a healthy self-image, the importance of a proper mindset, and how-to selectively choose your thoughts and deal with disappointment. The book offers insight on dealing with challenges, the importance of giving, and choosing to be happy.
I learnt from the book on how to find the good in almost every situation. Regardless of discouraging circumstances or challenges, there are things to be grateful for: people, relationships, opportunities and talents. The book explains that much of life is routine, we can stir up a fresh supply enthusiasm within ourselves. It’s not momentous events in our lives that ignite enthusiasm, nor even perfect situations. Rather, enthusiasm springs from choosing to look for grace and blessings in our lives. Making a habit of living with gratitude and searching for good can open one’s life to positive, life-changing opportunities. While cultivating discipline as a key attitude towards life.
In this book, the first step to living at your full potential is to enlarge your vision. To live your best life now, you must start seeing your dreams coming to pass. You must conceive it and believe it is possible if you ever hope to experience it. To “conceive” it, you must have an image on the inside, of the life you want to live on the outside. The image has to become a part of you, in your thoughts, your conversation, deep down in your subconscious mind, in your actions, in every part of your being.
An old adage purports that if you want to be successful, you must follow your dreams. While I’d never suggest that anyone should abandon his or her dreams, the truth is, your life will follow your expectations. What you expect is what you will get. If you dwell on positive thoughts, your life will move in that direction; if you continually think negative thoughts, you will live a negative life. If you expect defeat, failure or mediocrity, your subconscious mind will make sure that you lose, fail or sabotage every attempt to push above average. The key element to enlarging your vision is raising your level of expectancy. One has to change his or her thinking before one can ever change his or her living. It’s important that you program your mind for success. That won’t happen automatically. Each day, you must choose to live with an attitude that expects good things to happen to you. Start expecting doors of opportunity to open for you. Expect to excel in your career. Expect to rise above life’s challenges. How we see ourselves will make us or break us. It’s important to understand that you are already equipped with everything you need to live a prosperous life; you’re filled with possibilities, incredible potential, creative ideas and dreams.
From the book, it shows that our mind is similar to a computer. What you program into it dictates how it will function. How foolish it would be to complain, “I hate this computer! It never gives me the right answer; it never does what I want it to do.” Think about it: you can have the most powerful computer in the world, but if you program it with the wrong software or with misinformation, it will never function as the manufacturer intended.
From the book, I discovered that happiness is a choice. You may be tempted to think that your best life is still a long way off. Actually, nothing could be further from the truth. Your best life starts today! The final step to enjoying your best life now is to choose to be happy today. You don’t have to wait for everything to be perfectly straightened out in your family or with your business, or for all your problems to be solved. You don’t have to forgo happiness until you lose weight, break an unhealthy habit or accomplish all your goals. No, you can be happy right where you are. Happiness is a choice. When you get up in the morning, you can choose to be happy and enjoy that day, or you can choose to be unhappy and go around with a sour attitude.
You must learn to live one day at a time. By an act of your will, choose to start enjoying your life right now. Life is too short not to enjoy every single day. Lets all learn to enjoy our family, friends, health, work; lets enjoy everything in our lives.
An important point I took out of this book is that a relaxed attitude will not only lengthen your life, it will make it much more enjoyable.