5 Things Your Future Self Will Thank You For Doing Now

By Luke Miller Truth Theory

Who you are right now is a combination of all the thoughts, feelings and experiences you have had up to this very moment. What you do next, effects the next moment in an infinite cycle of cause and effect. This article will change your life, maybe not drastically, but everything you do and every decision you make changes your life in some way, shape or form.

Are we guided by a higher intelligence or a creator? Maybe, and this is something that only you can decide if you believe in. But regardless, we still continue to participate in the game of life, the fact is we have to, as the only other choice is suicide.

There are many small decisions we make, many of which matter very little in terms of life quality. However, there are many big decisions that you can make now, which your future self will thank you for and here are 5 of those very things:

Facing Your Shadow

We are often told that we should “focus on the positive” “look on the brightside” or “feed that which you would like to grow” and while in part there is some truth to this, the reality is- we all have darker aspects to our personality.

You can try to be 100% positive, 100% of the time, but this is just a form of repressing your true feelings. The reality of life is we will get hurt on our journey, we will not be perfect and we will also upset people along the way. We will have thoughts, feelings and actions that do not always represent who we truly are. Burying them is like putting a lid on a volcano, it may slow things down but inevitably the lid will blow.

Shadow work is about building a compassionate relationship with these darker aspects of your personality, bringing them into the light, accepting them and letting them go if you need too.

Planting Deep Roots

Life will test you as the seasons change, so it is good to have something in reserve for the lower moments. Being grounded helps you not to fall every time a strong gust of wind blows.

Being grounded has to do with security and we often liken security to having a stable job, home and income- however you can unground yourself just as much having these things if fear is the driving force behind it. With this in mind- if you trust, and have a fearless mentality you can have no possessions, home or income and still remain grounded and confident in your abilities to produce these things when needed.

Grounding to my understanding comes from having skills and abilities, and also training the mind to be able to deal with adversity. Real security comes from the ability to be comfortable in the moments when you have no perceived security, as when you master this- you become the resource for all that you need to survive.

Connecting With Your Inner Child

The way we think and feel changes a lot during our early years. Your 4 year old self will view the world very differently to your 7 year old self, and your 7 year old self will view it very differently from your 10 year old self. When you enter your mid 20s your brain is fully developed and less changeable, and we often forget the way we viewed things in our younger years.

Revisiting your past is something that we should all connect with from the perspective of our current state of mind, this often helps to bring some rationality to old trauma and experiences. But there is also benefit in connecting with your inner child to view your current life through the eyes of a child, this brings more fantasy, ambition and playfulness to that which you may be looking at in a very rational way now.

Lastly you can revisit old experiences through the eyes of a child, listen to what your inner child thought and felt during these moments. You can ask advice from your inner child and see what comes up, sometimes bringing a bit of youth to our “grown up” problems, can really reveal a lot about the experience.   

Building A Relationship With Yourself

The person we will spend the most time with in our lives will always be ourselves, so ask yourself this, would you want to spend all of your time with someone you don’t like? Or someone you don’t understand? Or someone who regularly puts you down?

We all have different needs, some of us are introverted and like spending a lot of time being alone, some are extroverted and like being with groups most of the time, and there are a million different variables in between with no right or wrong way of being.

We all have our own little ways, perfections and imperfections- with some ways of being that we cannot control and many ways that are not truly us. Maybe you keep letting the wrong people in and you are missing the lesson/s? Or you are not operating from the heart and allowing fear to lead you? Whatever the case is for you specifically, like all good relationships, we grow from putting in time and effort. Don’t forget to spend time with yourself and listen!

Searching For Your Purpose

It is my personal belief that we are here to find our true purpose and once we find that purpose we are able to benefit humanity in the best way possible. For some purpose is obvious and for others it takes a lifetime (or longer) to find. You can find purpose, but not know how to execute that purpose and often you can think you have found your purpose only to realise that it is not your true purpose. It is a confusing road and can often take time to really understand why you are here. This is why I have put this here as the last point, because should you decide to actively search for your reason for being here, your future self will truly be grateful.