5 pillars of life

5 pillars of life

What are the top 5 things that you value in your life?  This may look different for everyone.  It is important to figure this out in advance so that when you have choices to make or you reach a crossroad, you know which way you are headed.  A lot of us just fly by the seat of our pants, we make decisions in the heat of the moment, without considering the fundamentals of what is important to us.

We all go through a stage where material things are important to us, even more so when we started with nothing, but once your basic needs are taken care of, there are more valuable things to take into account.  So, material things are great, but you cannot take them to your grave.

Here are 5 universal pillars for you to consider:

No. 1 Relationships – this is your no 1 core pillar.

We are human and need interaction, be it physical or emotional.  A lot of people put a lot of store in family, which is great, but what happens when you don’t have family?  You have a network of close friends which you could see as family.  Let me tell you though, there are people who think their family as a burden, so find the good in what you do have.  Relationships are what make your life worth living and it is important to nuture them.

No. 2 Spiritual

We all need to believe in something, something that is your guide during your life. You may be religious and have your guide through your church, or if you are not you may have inner guidance.  Everyone has a moral compass and it is up to you to decide which side of the scale you want to play in life.  Instinctively you will know when something bothers you, you just have to listen to your body.

No. 3 Physical

In this life, we are born into a physical body with which to do as we please. We also know that for whatever reason, some people have challenges that they are born with.  You get to decide how you are going to treat your body in this lifetime, the better you look after it, the better it serves you.  It is a well known fact that if you eat healthily, do regular exercise and follow hygienic protocols, you get to live a productive life. Some people will always have challenges and this is where your emotional pillar comes in.  It is counter productive to fight “what is”, but it is your responsibility to figure out how you are going to deal with your set of circumstances.

No. 4 Emotional

My personal opinion is that we don’t nearly cater for the emotional side of our lives. Our schools are all about the physical and intelligence, but not how to command our emotional lives.  Mostly we are taught to hide our emotions as it is not appropriate to air them.  So we stuff them down and wonder why we suffer so much pain.  As a result of this we suffer from a variety of added illnesses like depression, eating disorders, alcoholism just to name a few.  Feeling our feelings is not wrong, it should be encouraged.  Most people think they have to act on their feelings, which is not the case.  If you get angry, you do not have to scream and shout, you can just sit with that feeling.  More often than not, eventually the feeling will subside.  Then you can decide if and when you would like to act.  Most likely you will be in a better space to deal with it.

No. 5 Environment

We only have one major environment and that is our planet. And as my son says, we are the size of a grape (earth) compared to a soccer ball (Jupiter).  To use his words, “very humbling”.  Most of us are so worried about our day to day lives, that we often do not pay much attention to our earthly home.  And we should, as there is nowhere else to go.  Ok…enough of the dramatic!  On a smaller scale, your environment is important.  I enjoy beautiful surroundings, lovely gardens and peaceful spaces, it is so inspiring.  What kind of environments are you into?  Which inspire you?