If this was my last day on earth, would I be happy with it?

If this was my last day on earth, would I be happy with it?

Before I start this post may I please take a moment to acknowledge those of you who may be triggered by such a statement having lost someone, or considered losing yourself in this year. This post is by no means intended to offend you, nor diminish what you are feeling right now. Please let me take a moment to acknowledge your loss, and your strength, and most importantly to acknowledge you. 

**************************************************************************

Now… back to the question posed by my bolshy app this am…

If this was my last day on earth, would I be happy with it?

This day started in a profound way. I must admit, it had the hallmarks of a perfect last day.

But by 10am it was fair to say that like many days it had gone to shit.

Not shit in an irretrievable, gobsmackingly awful kind of way I note..  Just shit in a ‘why didn’t this day keep giving those unicorn farts’  – back to the same old same old kind of grimace way.

Adulting ‘they‘ tell me, is hard.

But ‘they‘ also failed in the specifics of ‘hard’. ‘They’ forgot to mention that being a grown up can be boring, monotonous, mundane, lacking excitement (did I already say that) and downright disappointing.  And… then it’s not.  And… then it is again.

And yet, when my app asked me this morning “If this was my last day on earth, would I be happy with it?” I said “HELL NO”.

And my comment didn’t come of not being satisfied with what I’d achieved, nor did the comment come through lack of love, loss nor fear of what would happen next.

I said HELL NO because I know there is more.

There is always more to learn, always more opportunities to love, always more to give and always more space to grow.

Some, in the coaching world may call this a ‘growth mindset’. Personally, I’d rather think of it as both a belief in a greater self-purpose –  a faith that tomorrow will always be just a little bit better and… hard work pays off.

And hard work does pay off, even if the days, the months and the years leading into it feel slow, sluggish and tiresome. People ask me how (and more often why) I pack so many things into one day. I suppose I’m just conscious of time – and I want, really want my minutes and hours to count. So… my best tips on living like it is your last day on earth:

1. Love abundantly – talk about love, tell people you love them and approach even the mundane with love.
2. If the energy isn’t right step away – it’s not woo woo – you’ll feel it (if you listen and stop telling yourself that repelling feeling is just you being you)
3. Make a great plan and take time to check in on it
4. Hang out with good people – people that want the best for you, that will still be there even when you’ve tripped over and skinned your knees, even when you can’t see up from down and even when you are being an intolerable pain. They have got your back. And guess what? You’ll feel their energy too.
5. Be kind – it doesn’t cost anything to be kind. The world can be very cruel and who knows how a small act of kindness could change somebody’s day
6. Tell people about how cool they are – because compliments in this world are very limited and people really deserve to hear about the cool things they are doing.
7. Be honest – you know that saying about blowing smoke and bums – well – don’t be that person.  Apply your honesty and honestly tell people what you’re thinking. Sure, it may not always be great feedback but you’ll get a lot more respect for it, and when you do share a compliment that will also be a whole lot more profound. (NB in the process firmly plant yourself back in point 5)
8. Assert your boundaries – know em, set em, reinforce em. Your boundaries are the little fences you get to surround yourself with. It’s about self-respect. Set those pickets in place and keep them there.
9. Spend consciously – Be somebody’s first customer, spend your money with little local suppliers, encourage your workplace to spend locally and give your hard earned cash to people who will also spend it locally
10. Protect your health – (side note: this one is my greatest challenges but a solid note for the future albeit coming at 10). Find out how you can look after your body better. Listen to your body and treat it like you’d treat your best friend. (yep, still learning this one).

I’m sure there are other pathways to enlightenment. For me – I don’t want to just ‘get through’ this life… I want to grab it with two hands, give it a good shake down and give it everything I possibly can.

How about you?

Kerry Grace is a voice for regional Australians. A passionate seventh generation resident of the Nambucca Valley she is a skilled communicator with the ability to articulate messages between community and government and all in between with the aim of enabling positive solutions for communities.

Kerry is a social entrepreneur, writer, facilitator and speaker. She is currently employed as a CEO of a regional economic development organisation in NSW Australia and managing her own company Evolve Group Network (est 2004).

Kerry regularly writes about regional do-ers, accidental leadership, being a mum in business, self-care and adapting for an uncertain future. www.kerrygrace.com.au

Image credit: Photo by Boudewijn Huysmans on Unsplash