How to Increase Life Satisfaction

A man should learn to detect and watch that gleam of light which flashes across his mind from within, more than the lustre of the firmament of bards and sages. Yet he dismisses without notice his thought, because it is his.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Two and a half years ago I left the corporate programming world to work full-time on my own software business. It’s gone well and I have no regrets, but sometimes it’s been tough – the most challenging times have often involved being socially isolated. I don’t talk to another soul most days of the week, something which took getting used to.

Being isolated for long periods of time creates a perspective that is difficult, if not impossible to arrive at in standard employment where one regularly interacts with those who have bought into the ethos of modern culture.

What follows are some ways to increase life satisfaction in this culture.

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Leave Corporate Life And Create A New One

Feel trapped in your current job? Career hit a dead-end? Or maybe you’re just sick of the corporate grind all-together.

Many people feel this way. The problem is that most think this is “just the way it is” and that’s that.

I’m here to strongly proclaim that the nonsensical existence many of us lead is neither the way it could be, nor is it even “natural” in terms of the evolutionary path our ancestors traversed.

I firmly believe you can change your life situation to be much more in line with your natural tendencies. A life of meaningful work inline with your inborn talents. Spending your time doing the activities you value. In other words being “The Real You”.

All that’s required is patience, discipline and a bit of knowledge.

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Pursue Your Life’s Calling Using “The War of Art”

For those that have who have found it difficult to proceed along the path of their calling, there isn’t a better book than The War of Art by Steven Pressfield.  Although geared toward authors, I consider this an essential read for anyone attempting to create something of their own that they feel is true to themselves, outside the guidance of a boss or other figure we typically rely on to keep us on track.

This book as highly complementary to Beyond Success and Failure which is all about self-reliance by breaking free of your child-like dependencies.  If you’re ever going to live up to your true potential you’re going to have to quit paying attention to outside forces and summon the bravery to undertake your true calling.

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Beyond Success And Failure: Ways To Self-Reliance And Maturity

What follow are my personal notes and direct quotes from the amazing book Beyond Success and Failure: Ways to Self-Reliance and Maturity.  I read quite a few books each year and along the way I do lots of highlighting and typically write notes into a Google Document.

This time around I figured that it would be better to just put the notes on Taming Life since others may find this information valuable.

Overview: The book helps people who are depressed, anxious, nervous, etc overcome these tendencies and become more self-reliant.  Much of what causes unhappiness is firmly rooted in childhood patterns people carry with them into adulthood. These tendencies can be overcome with a combination of awareness and hard work.

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Want To Be Happier? Depend On Yourself More.

Every once in a while I come across a book that blows me away and completely shifts my point of view. One such book is Beyond Success and Failure: Ways to Self-Reliance and Maturity.

The book discusses problems that are at the root of a lot of unhappiness in our daily lives and offers solutions for overcoming these problems.

What I find particularly interesting is how much of the book’s information was foreign to me even though I’ve read a lot of self-help books over the past couple of decades.  The book was originally published in 1966 and appears to be another example of modern culture forgetting the wisdom our grandparents once possessed.

What follows are valuable lessons from the book and a few observations I’ve made. Note that in addition to this article I’ve posted lots of valuable quotes from the book.

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Slow The F*ck Down

Modern life is busy. Insanely busy.

However, much of the craziness is self-imposed. Or at we least passively allow it to continue.

You do have the power to reign it in you know…

Turn off the TV. Don’t check Facebook. Turn off email notifications. Check emails and texts every few hours instead of constantly. Delay responding to people. Cut back on the junk surfing. Quit reacting. 

Quit consuming for a one damn minute.

What’s that sound? It’s the sound of silence. Foreign isn’t it?

It’s even a little disconcerting.

Does the thought of being out of the loop make you nervous? Good. That means you’re addicted to the madness. And addicts aren’t in control of their lives, they just live for the next hit.

Don’t give outside forces the reigns then complain about how things turn out.

Step up to the plate and take back your life.

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Beware the Comfort Zone

It’s easy to avoid taking risks and get lulled into a sense of comfort for long periods of time.

Avoid this.

The Comfort Zone Trap

Being risk averse and always trying to stay ‘comfortable’ is a prescription for boredom, depression and fragility. It ensures you’ll live in an ever-shrinking box.

This picture from Feel the Fear…And Do It Anyway sums up the concept beautifully.

comfort-zone

Give yourself gentle pushes

Start taking small risks and intentionally push against the boundaries of your comfort zone. Then do it again. And again. Eventually you’ll notice your comfort zone expand as habituation takes hold.

And then you’ll notice the quality of your life improve.

Later on you may actually become addicted to taking risks, which is a hell of a lot better way to live than cowering in a shrinking box.

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