Wishing Your Life Away? 6 Changes to Live Every Day With Purpose

Updated 09/20/2022 – Are you wishing your life away? Of course not. At least not on purpose. We often get so involved in getting through the day that we don’t notice what’s going on around us. So, here are 6 changes to make to live every day with purpose.

Table of Contents

• Wishing your life away
• Be careful what you wish for
• Reality smacks pretty hard sometimes
• I am guilty of wishing my life away
• What can we do to live every day with purpose?
  • 1. Declutter your calender
  • 2. Get involved in your community
  • 3. Take up a hobby
  • 4. Volunteer
  • 5. Reserve some me-time
  • 6. Live in the Moment
• Your new appreciation for life
• Make every day count

Wishing your life away

Let’s try a little quiz.

When you woke up to the sound of your alarm at 6 AM this morning, did you wish you were able to hit the snooze button for another hour’s worth of sleep?

This past Monday morning, did you wish it was already the weekend again?

Do you wish that you had a few minutes to yourself today?

See, so many wishes. If we can be honest with ourselves, we can think of many little wishes that we quietly make to ourselves everyday!

Is there a way to stop wishing my life away and live every day with purpose?

Be careful what you wish for

I have many Facebook friends who post those memes that show a silly picture of an animal or human who is looking quite tired. The title is “Thank God it’s Friday” or something to that effect. We all understand what that means. Our workweek is extremely long and it takes forever to get to the end of Friday to start our weekend!

We absolutely adore weekends. So much so that there are plenty of songs written about them: Everybody’s Working for the Weekend by Loverboy; Saturday Night by the Bay City Rollers (never heard of it? It was a flash-in-the-pan song and group but I loved it many years ago). Elton John sang Saturday Night’s Alright. There are so many other catchy tunes about weekends.

What’s the common theme here?

Weekends bring the best things in life and we can’t wait to get there.

We wish everyday was a weekend.

Are you one of those people?

I could argue that you are wishing your life away!

Reality smacks pretty hard sometimes

My mother’s health declined quickly in the last six months of her life. Two months before here death, she decided to no longer treat for her infections and diseases. She knew what was to come. Her faith was strong and, I now believe, that she had a direct line to God. She prayed and He answered. Prayer allowed her to accept the inevitable and live her remaining weeks with grace and dignity. God had mercy and gave her a clear mind (for rational thoughts) and no pain throughout the end of her ordeal.

She ate what she wanted and thoroughly enjoyed every bite, she wiled away the hours sitting on her swing while soaking up the warmth of the sun, she marveled at the deer grazing in the back yard and loved the attention she received from her family.

Mom even took to staying up late to watch Hallmark movies. She loved those sappy love stories. (I do too.)

As I watched her in her last months of life actually living life, I knew that I had to make a change. I came to realize that I wasn’t living my life as completely as I could.

I am guilty of wishing my life away

Looking back, I found many examples of going through the motions of life with little thought.

I often wish that it’s Tuesday morning or Thursday morning so that I don’t have to go to the gym. Instead, I could look forward to feeling that healthy high that I get after my workout.

Wednesday night can’t come around fast enough because I usually don’t have any meetings. Why do I cram my schedule so full outside activities?

And the list goes on and on.

My mother knew that every day is a blessing. And it’s time for me to realize the same thing and make some changes.

What can we do to live every day with purpose?

Can you, or the bigger question, do you want to, change the way you live your life? You can make every day count.

Here are some suggestions on how to stop wishing your life away:

1. Declutter your calender

What’s on your monthly calendar? Are there meetings that you dread?

If you are a member of a Board or Committee that you feel you are no longer able to provide useful input, maybe it’s time to hand in your resignation. There is no shame in moving on. This will give someone else the opportunity to breathe fresh life into a project or event that you are no longer interested in.

2. Get involved in your community

This doesn’t mean add more things back onto your calendar.

Get out and be around people. Also, getting involved to solve problems brings satisfaction.

Find a need and search for a solution.

• Start a community garden; share the vegetables with the local food bank.
• Offer your assistance to implement a dog park.
• Organize a potluck block party.

Working on some smaller projects may get you feeling energized and give your days purpose!

3. Take up a hobby

Take time to enjoy yourself. Be creative and have fun!

• Start a walking routine. Better yet, invite a friend to join you.
• Like to paint? Many communities are involved in painting (and hiding) kindness rocks.
• Take guitar lessons.
• Or join an online book club nook.

You don’t even have to leave the house!

4. Volunteer

Helping others can provide us with a new purpose.

What are your interests?

• Stop by a local Senior Living Facility to see how you can help. They may want to start a Drama Club or organize a monthly sing-a-long.
• Do you work in the banking sector, government, or a service-driven business? Scouting groups are always looking for help to complete badge activities.
• Is conservation your thing? Do some online research to find your state’s clean-stream initiative and coordinate your own creek clean-up.

Check with your local Chamber of Commerce for nearby non-profits who are looking for volunteers.

5. Reserve some me-time

Maybe your job brings you stress on a daily basis.

You must find a way to leave work at the office. Your home should be a welcome retreat at the end of the day.

• Have the kids, your husband or significant other plan some meals throughout the month.
• Don’t wear your pj’s to the store for a late-night grocery run! Try placing your order on-line!
• Schedule a girlfriend night – dinner, a manicure, a movie, shopping excursion or just drinks on the front porch.

Even a small escape is something to look forward to as a break in an otherwise hectic week.

6. Live in the Moment

You’ve probably heard of living in the moment. But what exactly does it mean?

We get too busy going from one task to the next that we aren’t taking in other information.

How many times are you driving down the road and then wonder how you got to a certain point? You don’t remember passing landmarks along the way?

Tell me, did you notice that the bush right outside your office window is in bloom and has a heavenly scent?

Were there clouds in the sky today?

Try this activity:

• Buy some sticky notes.
• Write out things to pay attention to.
• Stick them on your mirror, the refrigerator, the front door, your car’s steering wheel, your office computer.

The outcome? The more you practice noticing, the more proficient you will become at living in the moment!

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Your new appreciation for life

Implementing these types of things can be a weekly event, scheduled bi-monthly or could be just a once-and-done activity.

And even if these ideas aren’t new, they should give you pause to think about how you are going through life.

Remember the clichés – Stop and smell the roses; live each day as though it’s your last; and don’t let life pass you by? I too have heard them all before. But since the passing of my mother, they now hold new meaning for me.

I definitely have a new appreciation of life.

Make every day count

I’ve already begun to make changes. I am listening to birds chirping, seeing the deep blue color of the sky and feeling, as well as enjoying, gentle breezes. Living in the moment really does allow me to appreciate God’s hand in the beauty of our world.

Although I will miss my mom every day for the rest of my life, I am so grateful for her final lesson to me – enjoy each and every day for it is truly a gift.

I am done wishing my life away…..

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