“How we spend our days is of course, how we spend our lives” Annie Dillard

Enjoy Life More by Slowing Down

I have been in Costa Rica over a week and I have already heard the phrase “Pura Vida” (Pure Life) several hundred times. Putting yourself in a new foreign environment allows you to see your social conditioning; if you stay alert you will see them come up to the surface.

When I wrote this I was having a cup of coffee at a corner café in downtown San Jose. One of the waiters approached me and asked if I needed anything else, I said “No thank you, coffee is just fine, could I actually get the bill please”.

He looks at me with a great big smile “Pura Vida, tranquilo amigo tome su tiempo” (Pure life, calm down my friend take your time). I think to myself “he’s right”, I have nowhere to go, so I end up hanging out and watching for 45 minutes.

Modern-day society is so fast-paced, that many of us after some time quit questioning many aspects of our lives, as soon as we quit questioning we are like robots on autopilot. Any issues that we may have are related to our level of awareness, when we don’t question things our awareness is non-existent, we just operate from old habits (memory).

If you are constantly questioning and watching your internal dialogue, you become more alert, and when you become aware of something you drop it. It simply exists because you are not aware, just an old reaction from past experiences. But life is always new, never old, you need to be alert to respond and not just simply react. Life is new and needs new answers even if the situation is very similar.

Meditation is vital because it creates space between your consciousness and your thought process, the more you meditate the better you are able to see your thoughts and therefore question them.

As soon as I became aware that I was trying to race around like back home, I dropped it and enjoyed my coffee. Poverty is pretty prevalent down here, but I can’t help to notice that because the pace of life is so much slower, they actually take the time to appreciate the little things. People are very lively, music is everywhere, and every corner is an opportunity to socialize with friends.

If you constantly find yourself racing around without questioning why you are doing it, slow down, you are either living in your past or imagining your future. Is what you’re doing still beneficial for you? If not quit doing it, do something new. Your time is precious, slow down and live your life today. Today is all you have and all you will ever have. No need to wait until certain future conditions are met, for you to start living your life, if you do you might never start.

All we have is the present moment so the only way to shape your future is by the actions you take daily. The secret to your success is going to be determined by your daily agenda. If you learn to make a few key decisions in your daily agenda, you will accomplish what you set out to do. Just remember that you will never change your life until you change something you do daily, just make sure you slow down to enjoy life more and learn from the ride.

If you would like to find out “How To Work and Live Anywhere”, check out my buddy Karol Gajda’s awesome guide that helps you achieve it.

If you find my site valuable please pass it along to your friends and family.

(editors note: This is my affiliate link for “How To Live Anywhere”, I only recommend quality products that I personally review.  If you decide to purchase you are directly supporting my dream of being a full time writer, thanks a bunch in advance)