Why Settle When We Can Have So Much More?

In the past, I have settled. I have settled for mediocre. I have settled in bad relationships, jobs that did nothing for my soul, settled for friends that you could hardly even call a friend and I have also settled in worse than ideal living situations.

Sometimes we get complacent. We get comfortable and couldn't be bothered with the hassle of looking for a new job, meeting new people or searching for a new home. Whatever it may be, I get it. It's inconvenient and it's a lot of effort.

The resumes, interviews, getting out there and dating when you would much rather chill at home in your pajamas, the tireless search of a new place to call home or even getting out there and making new friends. It seems so tiring and exhausting just thinking about it. 

SETTLING FOR LESS AND CHASING YOUR DESIRES TAKES THE SAME AMOUNT OF EFFORT

These days, I choose not to settle. What I have come to realise is that it takes exactly the same amount of effort to pack up and leave a not so ideal situation than to stay in it. How draining is it to go to a job you absolutely hate and drag yourself out of bed? It's mentally and physically tough to force yourself to turn up to what, pay the bills?

When we find ourselves in a toxic relationship, the heartache, the tears, the anxiousness takes up a lot of your energy. It literally sucks the life out of us. I've been there. I have dated guys way past their expiry date, I've lived with people where I have found myself in an unhealthy environment and I have kept "friends" around that gave me more negative than positive vibes. The moment I finally decided to leave, that moment I stood up for myself, I felt a massive weight lift off my shoulders.  Life was actually a lot easier without them.

IF IT DOESN'T MOTIVATE YOU, INSPIRE YOU OR HELPS YOU GROW, LET IT GO

This is definitely one statement that I live by. Once I started to follow this and stick to this, I found myself so much happier. We alone choose who we spend our time with and what we spend our time on. Life can be taken from us at any given moment. Why waste it for something or someone that doesn't deserve it? We can never get that time back.

Quit that job you hate, there's plenty more out there! Do things you love and you may even stumble onto some newfound passions where you could potentially make a living from. Once we start to do things that feed our soul and makes us happy, the universe has a funny way of introducing people, opportunities and circumstances into our lives that lead to even more happiness. The first step is to help ourselves and take action. If we don't take steps towards our own happiness, why would the universe want to help us?

Let go of that toxic relationship, say goodbye to that fuck boy/girl, walk away from that so called friend that only brings negativity to the table. Life's short. If we keep those people around, we don't leave much room for better people to walk into our lives. We may even not notice a more suitable person because we have all of our energy directed onto the wrong person.

STOP MAKING EXCUSES, EVERYTHING WE WANT IS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF FEAR

What other jobs are there? No one will hire me. There is nothing else I want to do. I don't want to leave this relationship because I may not meet anyone else. It's hard to make new friends, I don't want to be lonely. Excuses. That's all they are and deep down we all know it.

Nothing great comes from being comfortable. In order to achieve greater, we must take risks. We must take chances and we mustn't be afraid to fail. Staying in a less than ideal situation isn't exactly succeeding so what have we really got to lose?

Chase your dreams, surround yourself with genuine people, stop wasting time in relationships where your value and self worth is compromised. We have been given one life and this is it. Make the most of it. If we try and fail, try again. Nothing worth having comes easy. If it did, everyone would have it. 

It's your life, take that leap of faith, stand your ground, know your worth and take action towards your goals. If you start to do this, I promise you that your world will change for the better. This I know for sure.