The pillar of life is a term often used in self-help books and business literature. Ranging from goal setting to time management, the pillars are meant to bring order into one’s life or career. They are also known as the “inner game” because they are all related to how you work with yourself, inside your own head.

To be effective the pillars of life need to become habits that you stick with over time. That means it has to be something easy and effortless for you, not just another task on your list that needs doing. If you’re looking for ways to overhaul your life then consider these healthy changes:

Stop To Analyze

Whenever taking on a new activity or goal ask yourself, “Am I hungry, angry, lonely, or tired?” If you answer yes to any of those then wait until your energy levels are back up. This will ensure that you’re not making decisions from a low state and will help stop over-indulging which leads to failure.

Find a quiet place where you won’t be disturbed to sit down, relax, and center yourself. Visualize some kind of symbol that will help calm your thoughts and push out negativity – the example I always use is putting on “zen mode” like Snake Plissken in Escape from New York. Calm yourself not just for the sake of achieving goals but also because it will put you in a position for success.

It’s never too early to begin preparing for upcoming events. This lays the foundation for future plans by getting you used to think ahead instead of living entirely in the present moment. Lining up travel arrangements or booking appointments takes little time yet pays off very well in the future.

What needs to be done should be prioritized first, followed by what can wait until later. This way you know where to put your attention so nothing important gets overlooked or neglected. You might have to break down big tasks into smaller ones that are easier to digest and accomplish daily.

Exercise diversity in your daily activities. If something always works for you, it’s probably time for a change of pace. It doesn’t mean you’re bored with life – maybe just wanting another taste or ingredient that will keep things fresh instead of being stuck in routine mode.

When it comes to planning out your day, think about diversity as being able to engage different senses either through touching, hearing seeing, tasting, smelling… it all counts as ways to switch things up.

In other words, you want your body to have a great workout with different muscles being activated and stretched but variety is also key in terms of where the workout takes place so don’t always go indoors or outdoors because that’s what you’re used to doing.

You don’t have to run a marathon tomorrow if you’ve been taking it easy for a few days/weeks/months – just incorporate some light exercise into your day whether it’s going for a walk, spending time outdoors, or doing something active with others.

Take time out of your busy schedule to make it about yourself – this doesn’t mean soaking in the tub while binge-watching shows on Netflix for hours on end but the basic idea is to take some time to relax and do things that you enjoy.

Understanding What Needs To Be Done

Don’t shy away from who you are, instead embrace yourself for who you are, your good qualities as well as the not-so-good ones because, at the end of the day, you’re still a great person even if it doesn’t seem like it at times.

Incorporate meditation into your routine, this can be done in many ways such as yoga, mindfulness activities, or simply taking some time out each day to sit quietly and meditate without distractions. It’s an amazing practice for relieving stress and promoting relaxation both mentally and physically.

These pillars in life work together synergistically so when one exercise is practiced, another pillar benefits too but none are more important than the other. A balanced healthy life results from a well-rounded practice of each one.

Be Honest to Yourself and Others

Honesty is something that everyone can relate to but many do not fully understand its importance. So much suffering comes from lying about how we truly feel, what we think, or our situation as well as others suffering because of the lies they’ve been told.

People want to believe whatever is easiest for them or whatever fits with their view of the world but those who break free from this way of thinking develop self-confidence and self-worth which is a huge step towards living a fulfilling life. When you’re honest with yourself you’re able, to be honest with other people about who you are, where you’re at, what you want and need.

Be Open to New Experiences

Living life without experiencing new things is like buying a book but never reading it. Even if the information contained within does not benefit us directly it can give us insight into our own personal development process. The first step of any change is recognition; we cannot do anything until we first know what needs to be done or changed.

For example, if you’ve always had an interest in living abroad but never made the move because of your fears then try something small such as staying in a hostel for a weekend or taking part in a bar crawl with people from around the world.

Once we experience things for ourselves we can resolve issues such as the fear of doing what makes us happy. If this strategy is too big then try something more manageable such as traveling within your own country or taking part in a different form of culture such as reading books from another nation.

Attitudes

The way we view the world and any situation have a direct effect on our feelings and actions. For example, if someone keeps telling you that you’re lazy and worthless then they will most likely find you have little motivation to complete tasks.

Your self-esteem becomes so low that you don’t think you deserve anything better than what others say about you. In turn, this causes resentment towards others who do have positive thoughts about you.

If you are able to have enough faith in yourself, lack of motivation will probably be the least of your problems. You will notice that people begin to admire you for standing out, which can boost your sense of self-worth further.

Values

Since time began humans have had a moral code they live by, whether it is ordained by one’s religion or simply what is right and wrong based on current cultural views.

These values are particularly important when something difficult needs to be done or if someone else is suffering. If this person breaks their morality then it could potentially result in consequences such as jail time even though they don’t mean any harm towards anyone else.

To illustrate the severity of these consequences let’s consider the following scenario:

A man is struggling to provide for his family and decides that if he robs a bank then he could easily gain a lot of money in a short amount of time. He does not want to hurt anyone but just needs some cash quickly for his family.

There are two very important values associated with this situation: Justice and Responsibility. The moral code shows that it is unjust because stealing from others is wrong no matter what circumstances you are in, so robbery becomes morally impermissible. In addition, the value of responsibility highlights how stealing from someone else will lead to punishment/consequences which means you have done something wrong.

In this case, the consequences associated with breaking these two core values are the robber not being able to help his family for a long time and will have to pay back any victims.

There are plenty of other core values that are not mentioned because this is just an analogy, but you can see how they all work together to create society’s moral framework which guides us through life.

Guidance

However, everyone needs guidance so if one person does not follow these values then their behavior must be regulated by others who do adhere to them. If someone does something wrong or hurtful it should be dealt with using consequences so that people know what behavior is acceptable and what isn’t.
The punishment should also fit the crime as some crimes like stealing need more harsh punishments than others like avoiding responsibility (e .g. refusing to work).

The foundation of these values comes from each person’s conscience which guides them through their entire life based on what they are taught as a child, mainly by their parents and the school system if they go to one.

It is important that people are able to understand right from wrong because this leads to mutual respect amongst the community which produces long-term happiness for everyone involved.

If someone does something wrong it must be corrected but this should not happen in public unless absolutely necessary because otherwise it will reduce self-respect and create an unpleasant atmosphere for everyone present.

Be Encouraged

On the flip side, if someone does something good then others need to recognize it publicly so that others feel encouraged to do the same thing themselves.

A person will always have strengths and weaknesses so it is important to be able to work with both. For example, people that are good at one subject may not be good at another, but they can still teach or tutor others in that field if they wish.

Likewise, people who are good at something don’t necessarily need to do it professionally. If there is a hobby that they enjoy then this can be enough for them as long as the material needs are taken care of by their job or other sources.

Unhappiness will occur if someone tries to change themselves too much because trying to reach an unrealistic goal will set up an uphill struggle against their own character which causes frustration.

For example, someone might want to be an actor but they are not extroverted enough to enjoy the attention required for that profession. Even if they are able to force themselves into becoming more extroverted then they will still be unhappy because it is contrary to their natural tendencies.

Be Self Aware

Self-awareness of one’s own character and limitations, whether innate or developed through life experience, is important because it helps someone find their niche in this world where they can express themselves without bringing unhappiness upon themselves.

However, if someone feels like they don’t know who they are or what their purpose is in life then there can be two possible outcomes: the first being that the person fully accepts these anxieties about self-discovery and decides not to follow any particular direction in life; or second guess, the person decides to actively search and explore themselves through introspection and possibly guidance from a mentor.

Six Steps To Restore Balance

FEED: Begin each day with some form of exercise as that will increase blood flow to the brain and make it easier for you to learn throughout the day. It also ensures you’ll have more self-control when faced with unhealthy food options.

LISTEN: Whether it is a morning podcast on your commute or an audiobook during lunchtime listening allows you to spend more time learning something new without investing much effort directly. It also reduces feelings of boredom which helps to reduce snacking and other wasteful activities that arouse a lack of control.

RELAX: Even if you’re taking a few minutes out of the day to watch YouTube videos, if it’s something light-hearted then it can help break up the monotony and may even spur on creativity. This helps reduce stress levels throughout the day so that you’re less likely to feel overwhelmed by making potentially harmful decisions near the end of your day when your energy levels are at their lowest.

READ: Continuing with new information will help keep your mind stimulated which is helpful for longer periods between activities that require brainpower such as exercise or learning new tasks. This can be done through reading books, news articles, or even reading other people’s blogs.

GO OUTSIDE: The mind needs stimulation to keep it sharp and doing this through watching TV shows or listening to whatever’s on the radio isn’t enough. You’ll feel better about yourself knowing that you took part in making your surroundings a little bit more interesting than they would have been otherwise without you.

EAT RIGHT: Your body is what lets your mind do its thing so it’s important that you take care of it while taking care of yourself too because it can be very rewarding. You won’t just lose weight if you eat right; you’ll be healthier overall which means fewer trips to the doctor for minor things (which are usually big deals when put into perspective) and a better mental state of being.

So as you can see the pillars of life are rather simple to follow. As a society, we have become more self-aware and many people are following these rules already while others may be going about it the wrong way. The pillars of life can encourage you to get out there and do what is best for yourself by brushing off the dirt which has been accumulating on top of your shoulders for years upon years, maybe decades even.