20 Things to Start Doing

1. Try listening to other’s point of view instead of arguing. By giving others the respect to be heard, you also show them how to treat you. After you have heard them, offer your opinion on the issue with respect. And perhaps you may change their mind, perhaps they will change yours. The important part is to listen and speak with respect.
2. Be positive in your attitude to those around you. Speak positively and avoid responding to negative comments.
3. Be proud of overcoming struggles in your life. Show others your strengths and accomplishments. This could inspire others to do the same.
4. Allow yourself to make mistakes. Only by allowing ourselves and others that freedom will we learn and grow.
5. Compete only with yourself. You only need to prove things to yourself and you only need to be better that you were before.
6. Be kind. Bullying hurts others and there is no reason to try to have power over another person. Empower yourself by controlling your own actions.
7. Be a true friend. Love your friends the way they are but inspire and encourage them to be more.
8. Be truthful to others. Refuse to participate in gossip. Refute untruths when you hear them.
9. Do things for others, without expecting anything in return. This is called charity, another word for love. Nothing in the world builds up others and yourself like this.
10. Be there for others. But be there for yourself too. Do say yes when you can, but be willing to say no when you have to.
11. Make those you love, your priority. Make time for them and make their world a little brighter. Love is a verb, an action! Make sure that you treat those closest to you with even more kindness and respect than the strangers you hold the door open for in public.
12. Let love rule how you treat others. Treat others as you want to be treated, even when they are not treating you well. Use your mom’s advice, “If you can’t say anything nice, then don’t say anything at all.”
13. Apologize. Being sorry means that we know what we did wrong, we try to make it right and we don’t do it again!
14. Forgive. This doesn’t mean that we allow others an opportunity to hurt you again. It does mean not letting that hurt fester in you. Move forward.
15. Live in the present. We all make mistakes, learn from them and move ahead. Bringing up other’s past mistakes doesn’t help them move ahead either. Instead focus on what we can do better.
16. Growing means changing. We learn, we develop, we change. Only we can change who we are and who we will become. Plan to change in positive ways and embrace those changes.
17. Find your passion. Do things you enjoy. Share that passion and zest with others and allow yourself to dream. Enjoy hearing other’s share about their passions and dreams as well.
18. Worthwhile goals and dreams are hard work. Enjoy the challenge. Show others your perseverance and courage to make those dreams come true.
19. Take time to reflect, dream and pray. We discover our goals this way. We discover ourselves this way. And we discover that there is more to life than ourselves this way.
20. Be grateful- for what you have, for the people in your life, for the world you live in, for the air you breathe. There is so much to be grateful for that we should never stop saying, “Thank you”.