5 of the Best Questions to Make Your Life Better Right Now
Some of these questions are going to seem brutally simple. Almost stupidly simple. I think that’s necessary at a time when the world seems so complicated and complex. It’s important that we slow ourselves down and take time to reflect on what we’re doing each day. How are we treating ourselves? How are we treating others? What are we focusing on?
These questions are tremendous tools for reframing, refocusing, and executing the small things every day. Those small things done repeatedly lead to big things.
- What can I do right now to make my life better?
Most humans on earth spend the majority of their time at work, working, or actively doing something that is (hopefully) creating some value for an organization or other people. We can often forget that life is made up of every moment that we’re living. We don’t just live on the weekends. We don’t just live when we’re off of work. Time at “work” is the same time as any other point during the day.
If you’re frustrated or confused about what you’re doing & the direction you’re heading in, pause and ask yourself what you can proactively do in this next moment to make your life better going forward. I almost guarantee you that thinking ISN’T the answer. There has to be a definite, concrete action you take to do something new or change something that’s been bothering you.
2. What can I do right now to make someone else’s life better?
I once heard a soundbite of Tony Robbins saying something like, “ Almost all of our suffering happens when we’re focused on ourselves and our worries.” This sounds like common sense but without even being aware we constantly focus on ourselves and out own struggles. Getting outside of ourselves and putting the focus on other people is a magical feeling. You can literally feel the change in energy when you realize that your problems aren’t unique and you’re not alone. Everything we go through is a shared human experience. Someone out there is having financial difficulties, relationship troubles, work issues and so on. You can always help someone else.
After you take the focus off yourself, ask what can you do for someone else so that they have a better day. One small action towards someone when they need it most has the potential to change more than their day. It can go some ways towards changing their week, their month, and possibly their life. It sounds dramatic but people will always remember the small moments when someone else did something selfless for them. What if you became the person that consistently lifted other people up?
Be that person that constantly enriches other people’s lives. You’ll be amazed at how much richer yours becomes.
3. What is the most important thing I can do in this moment?
This is a fantastic question to ask yourself if you’re getting off track with your goals, your work, or really any single part of your life. It re-centers you instantly because it’s so damn simple. Do the most important thing you need to do right now. We know what the most important thing is already. We ask the question to find the truth within ourselves that we might be suppressing for any number of reasons. Procrastination, laziness, fear, boredom, etc… There are tons of reasons why we don’t take care of the most important things in life.
I know one of my biggest downfalls is getting distracted by shiny objects. Meaning some exciting looking opportunity that’s really just a sexy distraction and most likely a waste of time or something I’m not actually interested in. Staying focused on the most important thing will lead to the greatest results.
4. Am I doing whatever I’m doing right now to the best of my ability?
Just because we’re doing something doesn’t mean we’re doing it well. The saying “going through the motions” means we’re doing things just to complete them but not fully committing to the task at hand.
Sometimes it can feel like the monotonous tasks in our lives just need to get done no matter how sloppily or complete.
I have no clue if the saying “how you do one thing is how you do everything” is true, but I do know the more we can focus & execute well on one task at a time the more likely it is that this mindset will carry over to all parts of life.
5. What task do I have that I’m dreading the most right now?
Often the things we want to do least in life are the most important things that we need to get done. This question sort of interchanges with #3. If you’re finding your mind tricking you into thinking that your distractions are more important than what you need to get done, than rephrase your thinking with the above.
The things we dread doing often push us forward. Finishing that annoying report, starting that project we keep avoiding, cold calling that lead we need to get in touch with, etc…
I’m not sure why the human mind does some of the things it does but mastering it is essential to living a great life. Our mind controls our income, our relationships, our perception of life itself.
Hope these questions can go a little way towards bringing you back to the present and re-targeting on what’s really important.
