People Who Always Seem One Step Ahead Usually Live By 7 Simple Life Philosophies
Katy Smith | UnsplashAs I teeter on the edge of what many consider a major life milestone (40 years), I feel reflective. I’m people-watching at a cafe. I see people of different styles, shapes, and compositions stroll past, rushing to work. Many are lost in thought.
It’s difficult to gauge what’s going on in their lives. But these people likely experience life entirely differently from one another. We can have the same job, but one is miserable, and the other is happy. Knowing why this is comes from philosophy, specifically certain life philosophies that set some people one (or two or twenty-seven) steps ahead while others falter.
Here are the life philosophies of people who always seem one step ahead of everyone else:
1. 'The fastest path to misery is overthinking and underacting'
Intuition will tell you what to do, but will not give you a reason. Your ego will provide you with the direction to go, giving you a million reasons for doing so. It’s a common human tendency to overestimate our abilities.
For instance, a study found that 80 percent of drivers rate themselves above average: a statistical impossibility. This is also seen in how people assess their popularity and cognitive skills.
The real problem arises when people, due to incompetence, not only make incorrect decisions and draw wrong conclusions but also can't recognize their mistakes. This lack of awareness can lead to serious consequences.
2. 'An imbalanced body fuels unnecessary anxiety'
To maintain harmony in your body, the best thing you can do is avoid stimulants. Energy drinks, marketed as physical and mental enhancers, contain stimulants such as guarana and caffeine and are known to have worrisome cardiovascular side effects, including cardiac arrhythmia and arterial hypertension.
3. 'Don't sacrifice yourself to spare someone's feelings'
Our daily lives consist of absorbing unrealistic expectations from the media for what we should look like and how our romantic relationships should be. It’s no wonder that our social media is merely a presentation of who we think we should be and not a reflection of who we are. So, rather than letting fear drive our self-expression, we must learn to accept ourselves for who we are. Truth beats people-pleasing every single time — don't lose what makes you you, trying to keep everyone happy.
4. 'Someone will always seem to be doing better than you'
Nolan Manning / Unsplash
It’s easy to fall into comparing yourself to others and to feel low as a result. But we’re all on our path. What someone else is doing has nothing to do with you, so mind your business and stay on your path. We’re all facing our unique obstacles. Sure, seek out others as a source of inspiration, but if you feel worse through comparison, you must put on blinders and get back to doing your thang, babe.
5. 'Your life will become easier when you stop expecting it to be easy'
Whether it's your friends or family, we're constantly being let down by those we care about (and who care about us). But perhaps it's because we have too high of expectations of those around us.
We can't expect people to always do what we want, and we can't blame them when we are let down. We have to meet people where they are, which means bridging the gap from our expectations to their reality.
6. 'You are no less and no better than anyone else'
You are no less than anyone else. We’re all human, we’re all weird, we’re all capable of evil, and we’re all nervous about what others think. We are all connected in our own rare-bird uniqueness, and we're all doing the best we can.
Social media perpetuates the false idea that other people are more social, liked, well-traveled, whatever than you, researchers say. But people often fail to post about their failures, which gives off a fake impression of everything being hunky-dory all the time. (Spoiler alert: It's not.)
7. 'Fear is more helpful than it seems'
We misunderstand fear. We dislike the feeling and label it harmful. But if a wolf is running towards you with teeth snarling, the sense of dread is saving you from standing still and dying.
"Fear is telling you the current form of who you are is outdated, and it is time to change and upgrade to your next level of living," explained psychologist Dr. Sherrie Campbell. "When fear and anxiety show up, most of us tend to withdraw, and when we withdraw, we lose precious opportunities to grow."
In the same way, when you feel fear in your everyday life, it signals to you the presence of something highly significant. If you’re scared to get on a stage to talk, that fear shows you what’s worth doing, not what to avoid. There is an opportunity here: What you fear is always a doorway to a better life.
Alex Mathers is a writer and coach who helps you build a money-making personal brand with your knowledge and skills while staying mentally resilient. He's the author of the Mastery Den newsletter, which helps people triple their productivity.
