Posted: 3/4/2014 | Happiness	Comments
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The quest for meaning and personal fulfillment in one’s life is an important and noble pursuit.

Even though people might name different experiences that they find satisfying in their day-to-day lives, cultivating certain “qualities of being” help most of us find gratification in whatever our individual pursuits may be. Being self-aware leads the list in stimulating and motivating us to move toward a meaningful and satisfying life.

Self-awareness is built upon the willingness to address our inner life. It is our inner thoughts and feelings that can teach us how to have a life that’s meaningful to us. This includes those thoughts and feelings that cause us emotional pain or keep us stuck in our fears and limitations. Then, all of our choices in life can flow from our growing awareness and self-knowledge. This supports us in building a successful and meaningful life.

From these personal understandings, we more easily elicit other qualities that form the foundation of a satisfying life, including courage, strength, confidence, integrity, gratitude, success, and a connection with our deepest essence or highest source, whether you call that God, Spirit, Higher Power, or Oneness.

All of this leads us to identifying and living from our passion and purpose, as well as having healthier intimate relationships, and contributing to a satisfying life on all levels of our being—physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.

How can you tell whether or not you have a satisfying life?

You would first need the capacity to notice something beyond your momentary pleasure or pain. You would need to have or acquire an ability to be introspective and self-reflective enough to see a bigger picture of life.

In my book, Your Ultimate Life Plan, I invite people to ask themselves these 6 questions in order to ascertain the relationship between the life they’re currently living, and the happy, meaningful life we all long for:

•    Are you living the life you’ve always dreamed of?
•    Are you the person you want to be?
•    Is there a persistent complaint, pain, or longing in your life you’ve yet to heal?
•    Are you living and feeling fulfilled by your deepest mission in life, serving others, and making a difference?
•    Are you satisfied and fulfilled in your relationships?
•    Is your work aligned with your life-path, and are you satisfied with your progress?

If you feel you might need improvement after answering these questions, I suggest you become more conscious of your inner life so that it may lead you to your full potentials.

What steps can we take to build an even more meaningful life?

The most important step we can take is to become more conscious and get to know ourselves more deeply. Living a more conscious life changes our everyday experience in measurable ways. As we become increasingly aware and present to our inner life—our physical sensations, emotional feelings, and thoughts—we develop ego strength, move more comfortably with the ups and downs of life, and experience greater ease, resilience, contentment, and success. As we walk the conscious life path, we live from a deeper sense of self. We’re better able to slow down, recognize our gut feelings or intuition, and determine what’s truly best for us. We feel an alignment with our purpose, and naturally share our joy and unique gifts with the world around us.

A richer more meaningful life is available to you. By deciding to be more conscious moment by moment, day by day, you step more fully into all the potentials that await you.

•    What are sensing in your body now?
•    What do you feel emotionally right now?
•    Where are your thoughts right now?
•    How do you sense your inner connection with Spirit right now?

This is all it takes. Even a daily check-in helps you grow toward more self-awareness, more fulfillment, and more satisfaction. You are worth the energy and effort.

Please let me know how this goes for you. Your comments make a difference for us all.

For further information on accessing your wisdom, happiness, fulfillment, and peace you desire, click here to learn about Dr. Howard's Multiple Award Winning Book "Your Ultimate Life Plan: How to Deeply Transform Your Everyday Experience and Create Changes That Last."

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