Welcome to the Our Moral Compass Podcast. Each daily reading focuses on a different quote on how we can best apply it to our own moral compass and one of the five areas in Social Emotional Learning: Self-Awareness, Self-Management, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills and Responsible Decision Making. Thank you for listening and we hope you consider subscribing to the podcast for future episodes.
Live Life
“Don’t sit and wait. Get out there. Feel life.”
-Rumi
Today’s quote from the Poet Rumi is one that is simplistic in nature but provides us with a clear cut answer on what we all need to do with our lives: don’t wait for life to come to us, we need to get out there and make the decision to experience life for ourselves. It is important for us to understand that nothing in life will just happen to us without us putting forth the effort to make our dreams become a reality. I have often said to my students “If it is to be, it’s up to me.” We only get to experience this miracle we call life once. We need to not waste it.
Dr. Heather Moulder wrote a blog on How to Live Life to the Fullest (5 Truths To Help) and this is what she recommends:
#1: You Make a Big Impact By Being Present: Everyone has a ripple effect on those that we touch. Every. Single. Day. And often the most impactful and meaningful moments are the most ordinary (and small things). We must strive to connect with and be present with people. From loved ones to colleagues at work (and even to strangers). You never know what a kind word, meaningful question, or a heart-felt smile will do for someone.
#2: Living Life to the Fullest Is About Being 100% Yourself: You’re worthy and you have a purpose.
There are three main things that bring purpose and meaning to your life:
- Connecting to other people (humans are made to connect – you get meaning from it).
- Using your unique blend of strengths, skills, and talents to serve others (in a way that you enjoy).
- Aligning your life (through your choices and behavior) around your core values.
Living your life this way will help you see the value you bring to this world so that you don’t discount it or the impact you’ve made.
#3: You Don’t Have to Take Big Leaps (Just One Small Step at a Time): All it takes is a single step to get started. Just one. And that step need not be a big one.
#4: Who You Are Is More Important Than How: We tend to waste a lot of time on how to get things done – or even how they want to be perceived – without considering why. It’s time to change that.
What will matter most to you later in life (and what determines whether you’ve lived life to the fullest) is who you are by asking ourselves some tough questions:
- What do you want to be able to say about yourself at the end of your life – especially about how you behaved and treated others?
- What you value most in life, other people, and yourself?
#5: Your Biggest Regrets Will Come From Not Trying (Not From Trying and Failing): Instead of always asking “what if” and being afraid of all the potential negatives, ask yourself what will happen if you do nothing. Who and where will you be? And if failure scares you, have you considered that not doing anything is the biggest failure of all (and one that you’ve chosen)?
We are responsible for making our own choices, our own decisions. We can choose to live life or just exist in it. Choose wisely.
What does this quote mean to you and how can you apply today’s message towards developing your responsible decision making skills?
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Music from https://filmmusic.io
“Relaxing Piano Music” by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)
License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
A special thank you to Feedspot for recognizing the Our Moral Compass podcast as one of the Top 10 Social Emotional Learning Podcasts on the internet. It is an honor to be amongst the other podcasts on this list as we all strive to make this world a better place.
Becoming The Change 