Why do we Complicate Life?

Life is not that hard. It really isn’t, and there really isn’t much to it once you understand what’s worth doing and not doing.  Someone once told me that they base their decision on a simple preliminary check: If things make them feel gross or badly then they shouldn’t do them. How simple is this for each of us to do, it’s a short gut check to see how we feel about things before we start doing them.

This is a good place to start in life, and while it’s not a benchmark for every situation, it works very well for many, many situations we encounter on a daily basis. There is a catch, you have to know yourself well enough to know how you really feel, what feelings you’re feeling, and what those feelings mean in relation to you and your life. So this simple check is the basis for a much more evolved way of living that leads to greater emotional awareness and understanding of ourselves.

I think it’s commonly understood that we have the power to complicate or simplify our lives, but the ability to do it is what can trip us up. There have been many times I knew I wasn’t doing what was best for me at the time but I did it anyway only to confirm that it was a poor decision after. This means of trial and error is what I believe most people use as gauges in their lives. While they could take a step back and think about their situation, they plunge right in without giving things the proper consideration.

Starting with a simple check to see how we feel about something is a good way to live our lives with few or no regrets. But again, there must be some emotional understanding first to make this check really effective. This simple test can actually help lead us to greater emotional understanding and simplification of our lives. If only emotions were like instincts we would be able to more easily navigate through our lives.

But navigating life doesn’t have to be difficult we are given other gauges besides our emotions like our reasoning skills and ability to ask for help. If we thoroughly take the time to consider the implication of our decisions we greatly reduce the complexity of our existence. Thinking before you act is a simple tactic to decrease your stress and life complexity each day. Employing that tactic takes practice and nobody does it perfect the first time. Be patient with yourself, listen to your feelings, use your power of reasoning and you’ll be amazed at how much easier life becomes.