There are many ways to live life. The following section looks at three of the many different approaches that people may follow. Let’s explore these themes.
The Delighted Approach
People who follow the delighted approach often appreciate life. They take responsibility, count their blessings and aim to enjoy each day. They may also encourage other people in their daily lives and work.
Such individuals may be positive realists rather than wide-eyed optimists. They see possibilities but are also good at reading reality. They recognise warning signs and choose not to become victims.
They may also develop resilience by coming through tough times. These experiences help them to focus on what is important in life. They therefore aim to make good use of their time on the planet.
People who follow this approach may experience both pluses and minuses. The pluses can include the following. They choose to have a positive attitude, have a sense of gratitude, enjoy being in the present and encourage other people.
The minuses can include the following. They need to keep reading reality to watch for warning signs and, on occasions, may find that some people try to take advantage of their generosity.
The Driven Approach
Different people follow the driven approach for different reasons. They may be driven to care for their loved ones, follow a spiritual faith, follow a vocation, pursue a mission or aim to achieve their picture of success.
Such people often feel obsessed. They wake up in the morning and focus on: a) what they believe in doing; b) how they can do something towards it that day; c) how they can set achievable goals and get a sense of satisfaction.
People who follow this approach are often disciplined and map out the route they can follow to achieve their goal. One approach is for them:
To clarify the key strategies they can follow to give themselves the greatest chance of success;
To clarify the structure they can follow when pursuing these strategies – such as how to organise their schedule and resources;
To clarify the daily disciplines they can follow to achieve the goal and then translate these into a clear action plan.
Such people then follow these disciplines. Sometimes they do this without thinking. They simply click into action, follow good habits and aim to get positive results.
Sometimes they need to take time to reflect, however, to make sure they are still on track. They may then need to do some course correction in order to reach their destination.
People who follow this approach may experience both pluses and minuses. The pluses can include the following. They enjoy having a sense of purpose, following a daily routine, achieving daily goals and working towards something that will give them satisfaction.
The minuses can include the following. They may sometimes behave in an unhealthy way or ignore the needs of other people. They also need to make sure they are working towards achieving the right goals – otherwise they might be climbing the wrong mountain.
The Dramatic Approach
People who follow the dramatic approach love to feel alive. They often follow their passions, do stimulating activities and enjoy the drama that comes with these experiences.
Such people do not like to feel numb. They avoid this by throwing themselves into activities which may have positive or negative consequences. They prefer having dramatic emotions rather than feeling bored.
Some people follow this approach in a positive way. They feel joy when doing creative projects, tackling certain challenges or achieving a sense of fulfilment. They may also behave in a way that inspires other people.
Some people follow the dramatic approach by doing things that create collateral damage. They may get their kicks from being the centre of attention, creating conflicts or hurting other people.
Some individuals may have a series of relationships that involve drama and extreme emotions. They may choose partners who have addictions, for example, and this can lead to having dysfunctional and dramatic relationships.
People who follow the dramatic approach may experience both pluses and minuses. The pluses can include the following. They may feel alive, gather many experiences, create positive memories for life, keep developing and achieve peak performances.
The minuses can include the following. They may experience bipolar emotions – veering from highs to lows. They find it difficult to be selective because they want to do everything. Some people may also behave in destructive ways and hurt other people.
Some individuals may combine elements of the delighted, disciplined and dramatic approaches. If so, it can be helpful for them to learn how to manage the pluses and minuses of each route.
One common combination is for a person to follow the delighted and driven approaches. They may aim to make life as pleasurable and predictable as possible. They may also aim to find ways to deal with any dramas on the way towards reaching their destination.
Let’s return to your own life and work. What may be the approach – or the combination of approaches – that you tend to follow? What are the pluses and minuses of this approach? How can you build on the pluses and manage the consequences of any minuses?
If you wish, try tackling the exercise on this theme. This invites you to complete the following sentences.
Leave a Reply