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An Instruction Class for Life?

We now have vending machines that dispense kayaks. Here in Denmark, anybody is free to book a kayak online, go to the beach, pick up the kayak from the machine and take it to sea.

Those who just do that tend to get into trouble. Those who take a class first are much less likely to have to be rescued from mid-ocean by the coast guard.

Unfortunately, there isn’t a simple instruction class for life. But there are useful tools you can learn. I teach some in my courses, and you can find many of them in my book “Life after Bullying.” Life is sometimes easier if you take the time to learn how your body and mind works.

You Never Know How Much Time You Have

You don’t know how long time you have. Last year, a woman in Canada awoke to a loud noise in the middle of the night. Jumping out of bed, she turned on the light and saw a hole in her ceiling right above the bed. And on the bed was a 3-pound meteorite that had punched right through her roof, missing her head by inches.

It is exceedingly rare for people to get killed by rocks from space. But disease and everyday accidents also strike without warning. There is no day that is “just another day.” Every day is a unique gift. Make sure you use it well.

How will you have improved your life or the world at the end of today?

The Author of your Life

Are you the author of your life? Think of your life as a book, and each day a new page is written. Some of the things that happen are things that have to be done. You need to eat, sleep and take care of personal hygiene. There is shopping, cleaning, and washing. You will spend part of your time on your job. I discussed that on Monday.

But that still leaves a lot of time under your control. Think about whether you are spending that time in the right way for you. For some people, watching a movie on Netflix is the right choice. For others, it is keeping in touch with friends, or reading good books, or learning something new.

The test of your priorities is to write down in your journal what you did with your personal time each day. If you feel proud and happy to write about your day in your journal, you are on the right track. If you feel hesitant or shameful when writing down how you spent your time, that shows you that there is something you can change for the better.