Advice

Originally posted on HowtoPrioritize.com

JM's Advice on the Educational Aspect of Life

Knowledge is power. The world is highly competitive in the 21st century. If you want to compete against the millions of other people for survival, love, friendship, income, opportunities, and/or employment, you will have to remain competitive by being educated, succeeding academically, and continuing your education until the day you breathe your very last breath.

Going to college or going back to school is achievable. Anyone can get a college degree these days. There are hundreds of thousands of opportunities to receiving funding and aid to cover your educational costs. For those of you who are anti-education, think it over. This is not an issue of doing what the majority are doing. However, as long as you self-educate yourself with discipline and support from others, combining dynamic and challenging life experiences and developing interpersonal relationships, you, too, can become competitive. Many people lack the discipline and resources to do this one their own. A two or four-year degree often shows more than a solid education; it shows a two- or four-year commitment towards education, personal development, and your future career. It doesn't matter who you are or where you are in life. If you want a formal education, you can get it, and will be respected for your commitment. Either way, always keep learning. Never stop reading.

Making mistakes and being fallible is expected. People learn exceptional life lessons based on actions or choices that lead to short-term conflicts, loss, or failure. Expect to make mistakes, just don't lack the discipline, responsibility, and commitment towards your academic investments. Don't waste your time, effort, or money on your education by disregarding your values related to your education, training, and knowledge.

Reading and studying books is a great educational activity. If you find yourself watching more TV programs in a month compared to reading for pleasure or progress, you are missing out on investing in your continuing education. While reading content from web sites is helpful, it is often more powerful to read a published, printed text from an author. It's even better to study the content and advice in such a book. Learn to enjoy reading and it will become easier for you. Reading is a great life experience when you've got books on subjects you are most passionate about. Studying those books is a great educational experience if you wish to truly take away what you've learned from those books.

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JM's Advice on the Financial Aspect of Life

Money comes easily and frequently. It's truly very easy to make money and a lot of it. What a person needs is a positive attitude and faith that they will be successful. The moment a person associates fear with money, paralysis or financial loss may occur. Have faith and make smart financial decisions.

Invest in the best. You're going to spend it anyway. Spend your money on your greatest priorities. If your health is your #1 priority, invest in a gym membership, massage therapy and chiropractic sessions, and healthier food. If live entertainment is really important to you, spend your money on concerts and performance art rather than on less-inspirational distractions.

Risk vs. Reward. Gambling and investing in the stock market can be risky. If you have faith and decent knowledge about an opportunity, get some advice from a professional. Then, ask for a second opinion. Then, sleep on it. Basically, slow down, think about the potential, and ask yourself if it's worth risking it all, even if the risk is low. If you experience a current loss, have faith. If you intend to profit, it's very possible. It may take some time, however. Even 20 years. Ever hear of Taser International?

Creativity is a Cash Cow. Millionaires are known for their innovation and creativity, doing things few or none have ever done in the past. If you want to make money a non-traditional way, be creative. Take time to come up with unique one-of-a-kind ideas. It may take you weeks or months or years and you may evaluate hundreds if not thousands of products or services. Nothing is guaranteed unless you intend to get it by being proactive.

Save it for a rainy year. Having money for a "rainy day" was popular in the 20th century. Nowadays, it's highly suggested to have as much savings as possible to prepare you for unexpected life experiences like injury or illness, unemployment whether voluntary or not, or for great investment opportunities.

Almost everything is negotiable. it doesn't hurt to ask if there's any flexibility with the price of a product or service. You won't be insulting a person if you ask or if you even offer less. Or a lot less. America is all about capitalism. While it's a free country, it doesn't always have to cost so much.

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JM's Advice on the Personal Aspect of Life

Maintain a healthy and positive attitude. When you think good thoughts, you feel good. When you feel good and take a proactive approach towards life, work, and love, good things happen. You can only have one thought at a time. Make it a good one and keep thinking this way.

Determine your passions. There must be something that drives you wild. What's your #1 passion? What brings you to tears? What do you absolutely love to do, see, be apart of, or experience? Whatever it is, as long as it's legal and healthy, invest in it and include it in your life each and every single day.

Develop your interests and hobbies. Figure out what fascinates you and what you'd like to commit towards learning more about in the future. What do you want to tell people when they ask what you're into or what you do for fun? As long as it's healthy and legal, it can be a positive part of your life.

Develop your talents. While you don't have to be good at anything in particular, if there is something you do well or would like to do better, invest in it. If you love to play the piano, but have forgotten how to read music, commit to learning how to do it again. If you love to sing, but your throat becomes sore after a few notes, get a voice coach. It'll help you professionally as well as personally.

Focus on doing and contributing to things that bring you pleasure. Do what makes you feel good and attempt to avoid things that make you feel bad. If meeting people online, for example, makes you feel good short-term, then enjoy it. However, if you know that long-term, nothing will come from fruitless relationships, stop immediately. Feel good.

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JM's Advice on the Physical Aspect of Life

Make your health your #1 priority. Without a healthy mind and body, you won't be able to enjoy the benefits of living a pain-free, long-lasting life filled with pleasure, joy, and happiness. Without exceptional health, you will have to manage the implications of illness and injury, taking resources away from your other priorites such as family, friends, progress, making contributions to the world, and pleasure. There is no rational reason for not making health the most important aspect of your life.

Think good thoughts and love your body. If you're not happy with your body image, change it by starting with your thoughts. Be grateful that you're alive, intend to improve your body, and accept yourself. When you're committed to better health and a better body, you will see results. Discipline, faith, and a positive attitude are necessary. Imagine what you want to be like and you will become that person.

Make sure you know what you're putting into your body. Do you know how your food is processed, where it comes from, or how it got to your plate? If not, create awareness by doing research, speaking with healthcare professionals, and determining if what you've been doing for years is no longer right for you. If you want to find out why millions of people are becoming vegetarians, all you have to do is ask.

"Watch your mouth" when it comes to the liquids. Substances that may lead to substance abuse can gradually hurt you. Alcohol, nicotine, narcotics, and other substances are not given to children for a reason. That doesn't mean that adults should take advantage of their availability. Legal implications aside, avoid all nicotine and narcotics at all costs and limit your intake of alcohol to a minimum. It's very easy. Until you become addicted. As for soda, cut it out. Stick to water.

Rest as much as possible unless you suffer from depression. We're often "on" doing more and more each year. If you find yourself fatigued, try to slow down, and prioritize on your most important goals. Go to your bedroom earlier. Watch less TV. Be less productive by spending less time using the computer for personal purposes. Get a massage. Give a massage.

Join a gym and use it for at least 30 minutes each day. The costs are nothing as important as the quality of your life and your health. Join a convenient gym with a short-term contract and reasonable rates. Check out eBay for transferable memberships to save money long-term. Many gyms offer complimentary classes such as spinning and yoga. Take advantage and get addicted to the benefits of physical fitness. Consider a gym's personal trainer or hire a coach if you lack discipline.

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JM's Advice on the Professional Aspect of Life

Do what it takes to do what you want. Your career can entail anything you desire if you have the right attitude, resources, and opportunities. Do what's right not what's easy. If you feel that you must compromise and focus on a short-term employment distraction to get you closer to where you need to be to cover your costs of living or payback debts, then go for it. However, if you get sucked into an opportunity that won't let you progress with your professional priorities, it's time to leave. Take risks and have faith. Drop "fear" from your vocabulary.

Traditional jobs are not for everyone. Independent contractors, self-employed individuals, and entrepreneurs are flourishing. Don't be pressured by people who say that traditional jobs are more secure. Focusing on your professional priorities are the most secure opportunities out there. No job is guaranteed to last or guaranteed to help you progress with your career objectives.

We're in this together. Success is based on relationships: who you know and who they know. Creating and maintaining mutually-beneficial relationships is crucial. It's rare for someone to "do it all" on their own. The opportunities of always being connected, benchmarking on the best, and creating valuable partnerships is always out there waiting for your investment. Developing authentic relationships can be challenge and time-consuming and essentially easier than attempting to become successful working with strangers. Build upon your network daily and always be personal.

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JM's Advice on the Social Aspect of Life

FAMILY

Understand, accept, and forgive your family. Sometimes being related and sharing a history may be all that you've got in common. When mixed together, personality differences, differences in values, interests, and goals, and mental illness, can lead to conflict or potential chaos. If you and your family members are fully-functioning mentally and you instill values of open-communication, respect, and trust - and understanding, acceptance, and forgiveness, you will have a foundation of love stronger than many foundations found in families across the nation. Learn to say, "I'm sorry," and mean it sincerely and expect the same as well.

Just because you're related doesn't mean you have to have a relationship. The first thing that must be done is to understand, accept, and forgive a family member who has hurt you in the past. If you and another family member have a bad past and it is clear that neither of you wish to have an authentic relationship moving forward, it's okay to move on with separate lives and never speak again. If it's "not that easy" because of family events that both may attend, either only one of the parties may attend or there must be a cordial agreement between the two incompatible parties. There is no point to trying to reconcile for the good of the family when one of the two family members involved is not genuinely interested in patching things up and moving forward with understanding, acceptance, and forgiveness. Finally, if one of them has a negative attitude and is filled with regret, anger, and disappointment and simply wont let it go, let them go. Being a healthy family member entails understanding, acceptance, and forgiveness.

It's never too late to say, "I love you." Some families may not share the level of intimacy and emotion where saying, "I love you," flows naturally and often. At any point in your life, you have the power to share love with those you love. At any time you are able to express your love and devotion towards the most important people in your life. Written and verbal expression is powerful. There's nothing to lose when it comes to unconditional love. Worse case scenario: you'll both be saying, "I love you," all the time. Scary, huh. Do it today. It will change your life.

It's never too late to get to know your family members. If you feel it would be nice to really get to know your family, do it. Coordinate some time to essentially interview those closest to you. It'll probably bring you closer. In the end, you won't feel guilty or remorseful for not truly knowing your loved ones.

FRIENDSHIP

You are with whom you associate. Basically, you will be associated with anyone and everyone with whom you associate, so prioritize when it comes to spending time with and on friends.

You can always have too many friends. If you don't feel you have the capacity to maintain authentic and high-quality relationships, don't be pressured into being everything to everyone. The moment you don't know when a friend (or a dozen friends for that matter) celebrates their birthday, it's either time to ask and get to know them better or focus on your closest buddies. They'll know it's nothing personal, which is the problem from the start. The friendship isn't personal, but imaginary.

Friendships can come and go. It's only natural not to have as much as common with one friend as you did in second grade. People change all the time and especially after twenty years. If you notice that you value a friend a lot less than you did in the past, it's okay to move on. Nothing lasts forever. Who knows, perhaps in the future, you both may reunite and share more than a shared history together.

LOVE

Your soulmates are out there. Focus on doing what's right and not doing what's easy. Invest in the best potential life partners that are out there. Determine exactly the type of partner you desire and know that you would be committed to long-term. Then, go after them and don't give up. The moment you do, the chances of experiencing future divorce increases.

Practice being alone. Making the wrong decisions and investing your time, effort, resources, and heart in the wrong people can be lessened by feeling comfortable by being alone. Don't invest yourself out of desperation. Less is more. Think quality vs. quantity. Why have 100 spoons when you can have one amazing knife? You get the point.

Dating is like shopping and everything is on sale. "Dating" forces us to act quickly, take advantage of the opportunity, and often take what we can get. While "returns" are possible, "exchanges" can become common if two people don't take things slowly and develop a foundation of respect, trust, and friendship. Try going for a walk during the day rather than meeting for drinks at night. What's the rush? Start "shopping" for luxury "items" and focus on the best investments and not necessarily the best short-term "deals."

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JM's Advice on the Spiritual Aspect of Life

Over 30,000 gods have been documented. You can believe in whatever you want to believe in. Ultimately, we hopefully believe in the same thing - ourselves.

It's not your way or the highway. Understand, respect, and accept other people for having different faiths, beliefs, or religions.

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