Living Beyond the Mediocre Life

I believe that everyone has an inner desire to achieve more with their lives; no one came here for mediocrity. But, out of fear of failing or not wanting to exceed comfort zones, many people settle for a bog standard life.

For those willing to take a shot at creating something more with their lives, the opportunities are unlimited – question is, are you willing?

If the answer is yes, I’d like to share some tips with you that I have used to inspire myself, which have worked exceedingly well for me and can work for you too.

If You Want to Do Something Out of the Ordinary, Prepare For Doubters

I’ll never forget a pivotal moment in my life; I had just made the decision to start a business of my own, which was a huge step for me – I had no experience in running a business and I was stepping totally into the unknown – but I had ambition, I had drive and I was excited to share my news.

Talking to a friend, I began telling her about my plans, I guess I was somewhat naive in thinking she’d share my excitement. As I started spilling the details, I was stopped in my tracks by a question that I’ll always remember – she said, “What if it doesn’t work?”

Up until that point, it hadn’t dawned on me that my plans might not work out and I hadn’t even considered the consequences of what would happen if it didn’t work.

I look back at this moment now and feel such gratitude for the fact that I was able to see past the limitations of someone else because if I had allowed that passing comment to influence my decisions, I would still be in the same place I was in then.

This experience taught me a very valuable lesson – be careful whose advice you accept. Take advice from people who are where you want to be, don’t listen to those who are standing where you once were.

If you want to do something out of the ordinary, prepare for doubters. You need to be resilient to the reactions people will give you when you start making changes, and you need to see past the limits other people have set for themselves.

Utilise the Resources Available to You

What this experience also taught me was that I had to start mixing with people who shared my ambitions if I wanted to expand my beliefs about the opportunities that were available to me. But what I found, and what you might find too, is that it’s a lot easier to find people who are negative about your situation than it is to find people who share in your passion.

Any successful person will tell you when embarking into the world of business, to get a mentor. But I didn’t know anyone I could turn to, to ask the questions I had, such as “How do I unearth my possibilities?” “What is achievable from life?” and “How can I improve my life?” – I had to search further afield.

The beauty of technology today, is that we live in a world where information is available at our fingertips. We can search the web to find answers on absolutely anything. I realised that I could be mentored from the comfort of my own home. In fact, I realised that I could even soak up valuable information while I slept.

Each night when I climbed into bed, I’d get out my phone, open up YouTube and begin searching for content. I always selected a video that would offer me three things – inspiration, motivation and guidance – and I made sure I got it from the world’s most-qualified people.

I have now followed this routine every night for the last three years and I’ve listened to over 1,000 hours of content. I go to bed every night learning new tools that empower me with knowledge and drive to transform my life. It’s how I keep myself on track.

If you’ve got access to the internet, you have access to guidance from the most inspiring teachers, and that in itself makes you rich. Rich in resources. Use them.

Transformation is an evolving journey, one that needs a lot of attention over a lot of time – I can never become too knowledgable, and neither can you.

You and Me Have As Much Opportunity As Anyone

The worst position we can ever put ourselves in is the victim role, trust me, I spent years in it. I used to blame my past for everything that was wrong with the current state of my life – I felt wounded, which meant I was useless to myself.

It was only when I took ownership of my life and began realising that I already had the tools, and if I didn’t, I could find them, to improve my life, that things really started to change.

A victim is helpless and out of the victim role can only come more misery and suffering. Taking ownership means becoming helpful to your own life.

We all have the same opportunities available to us,  and the biggest lie we can ever tell ourselves is that we don’t. It’s a cop-out. Yes it’s true that some people get a head start, but no matter where we’ve come from, we all end up wherever we put ourselves.

Don’t let your past be your excuse, or you’ll just keep reliving the same painful scenarios over again and again. Let your past be your fuel – allow any negative experiences you’ve encountered to be your reason for turning it around.

Last night, as I lay down to sleep, I opened YouTube on my phone and put on a video from the incredible motivational speaker Lisa Nichols – the message I took from it was so powerful and empowering, and I woke up today inspired and ready to embrace the day. The message was: it’s not about where you’ve been, it’s about where you’re going – and that’s the note I’d like to end on.

Stephanie Dunleavy

Co-founder of Soul Analyse

Stephanie is a professional writer, blogger and the co-founder of Soul Analyse.

While she always tries to live in the moment, she feels it's equally important to look back at past experiences with open eyes to connect the missing dots and work out what we can learn for the future. She uses writing as a way to share her story with others in the hope that her past experiences can help someone else moving forward. She's also keen to gain knowledge from others' experiences and believes we can learn a great deal from one another!