{"id":39,"date":"2008-03-16T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2008-03-16T04:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lwlworldwide.com\/blog\/stop-improving-your-life-and-start-living\/"},"modified":"2008-03-16T23:14:37","modified_gmt":"2008-03-17T03:14:37","slug":"stop-improving-your-life-and-start-living","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lwlworldwide.com\/blog\/stop-improving-your-life-and-start-living\/","title":{"rendered":"Stop Improving Your Life — And Start Living!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Yesterday Barry showed you a video<\/a> on how to embrace two powerful habits, and gave you some new perspectives on how to look at what is often called “self-improvement”.<\/p>\n

He told you that you don’t need to look at yourself as broken or flawed, or be on a self-declared path of enlightenment in order to invest in yourself; you just need to take responsibility for your own choices and actions.<\/p>\n

After all, you are worthy of being the best you<\/em> that you can be — even though right now you already are the best you<\/em> that you could have been up to this point.<\/p>\n

And he shared a quote with you, which comes from author Robert Holden:<\/p>\n

No amount of self-improvement can make up for a lack of self-acceptance.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In fact, I’d love to share with you the entire article, which is excerpted from the book Shift Happens! Powerful Ways to Transform Your Life<\/em><\/strong> by Robert Holden, Ph.D. <\/strong>(and which follows, interspersed with my own commentary and clips from some of my audio interviews).<\/p>\n

To read and listen, click the link below…<\/p>\n

= = = = =<\/p>\n

Stop Improving Your Life — And Start Living!<\/strong>
\nby Robert Holden, Ph.D.<\/p>\n

Soon after my book Happiness NOW!<\/em> was published, a journalist interviewed me on the subject of self-improvement. She found what I said surprising and refreshing. Afterwards she asked me to write 100 words on what she called my “unique take” on self-improvement. Here is what I wrote:<\/p>\n

After living sixteen years, 5,844 days, on the spiritual path;
\nAfter sitting for 5,000 hours in earnest meditation;
\nAfter reading 1,000 brilliant books on success, happiness and love;
\nAfter listening to 500 self-healing tapes;
\nAfter attending 250 self-improvement workshops;
\nAfter benefiting from 200 therapy sessions;
\nAfter praying on my knees more than 100 times;
\nAfter going on twenty-five retreats;
\nAfter enduring ten fasts;
\nAfter suffering five colonic irrigations;
\nAnd after trying to forgive Mom and Dad more than once;
\nI finally got the key to happiness: RELAX!<\/p>\n

Some people are so busy striving for self-improvement that they have no time for self-acceptance. They also have no time for laughter, happiness or even relationships.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Not only do people spend too much time and energy striving for self-improvement, but they also spend too much time and energy striving for “success” on other people’s terms.<\/p>\n

What happens when we get overwhelmed or burned out? What happens when things just aren’t fun, joyful, meaningful or valuable to us anymore?<\/p>\n

This short audio clip answers those questions, and comes from an interview I did with Katherine Gibson<\/strong>, best-selling author of Unclutter Your Life: Transforming Your Physical, Mental and Emotional Space<\/em><\/strong>, and Pause: Putting the Brakes on a Runaway Life<\/em><\/strong>:<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n