There’s a lot of strife happening in our world. And if you are an empath like myself, it truly takes every ounce of effort not to allow the weight of the world to come crashing down.
In my own life, I have found that the practice of being “lighthearted” is a type of spiritual training of sorts. It is not solely physical; like taking a deep breath and letting go of the tension in your body. And it isn’t solely psychological; like letting go of emotional wounds through therapy. It is something in between.
Training yourself to be “lighthearted” involves finding the silver lining in your situation, freeing yourself of negative feelings, and learning to let go and let loose.
5 Ways To Keep It Light
1. Protect your Energy
Yes, protecting your energy can certainly include some boundaries and downtime from our current political landscape and the doom & gloom news cycles…
But what I am really referring to is becoming aware of the energy you allow to cultivate within yourself. We certainly cannot control what life throws at us; unexpected bumps and irrational human behaviors, but what we can control is how we react to those things. And, only you know yourself best; when you are about to become triggered, overreact, or go into that downward spiral of negativity… and only you can prevent yourself from going there.
When I become aware of this, I pause and ask myself, is this brash reaction really worth expressing, and will it bring more positivity into my life?
Often times it is not, oftentimes, I have better things to do and am in the mood for something juicy and uplifting instead. Capturing this exact moment in time, the moment right before the spiral is crucial to pivoting into lightheartedness.
2. Be Your Best Self
Whatever it is you are, embrace it, and allow yourself to be happy. For me, this can manifest in child-like behavior at times. I can be very silly, warm, and bubbly. And for some, those qualities may not be idealistic… and that’s okay!
Cultivating the art of being your best self is something that brings lightheartedness at the end of the day because you are allowing your best qualities to shine.
You will not be overthinking your actions and behaviors, worrying about what others will think of you, or whether you may come across as “too cheesy”, or “not cool enough”. It really doesn’t matter, as long as your intentions are pure. Being at peace with expressing who you are, allows you to be free and subsequently then allows you to free yourself of the judgments of others and not take life *too* seriously.
3. Lighten Up Your Load
Life is too short to be bitter. Maybe this is my “approaching Yom Kippur” (the Jewish Day of Atonement) mindset talking to you today, but truly, life is too short to carry all that dead weight… because it really doesn’t benefit you.
I have to constantly remind myself of this, as I am human, and my feelings can get hurt from time to time. But the reality is, human nature is incredibly complex, and people can be rude, have their own insecurities, be vindictive, and slight you (willingly or accidentally).
However, how much more detrimental is it to allow yourself to be slighted twice by harboring those negative feelings inside of yourself?
Forgive and forget as they say, and remember that hate is truly too heavy of a burden to carry… when I embrace this perspective, it is then that I have allowed myself the room to breathe and enjoy life.
4. Indulge in the NOW
Life is certainly too short to invest in negativity however it is not too short to indulge in the now.
Treating life as if you do have an abundance of time while not taking it for granted allows you to invite that lighthearted energy into your life. There’s always going to be a deadline to meet, a task to complete, places to go and people to see.
So why punish yourself by approaching every day with haste? Why not take a pause and enjoy the ride?
Approaching life as if there is much to look forward to, brings a child-like element to our day-to-day. So don’t be afraid to allow yourself to indulge, talk a bit longer, laugh a little harder, smile freely, and let those precious moments fully sink in.
5. Be Grateful
Simply expressing gratitude for the life you currently have, is enough to shift your energy from one of lack to one of abundance.
… one who is happy and full, is inevitably able to give more to others
And, a part of being lighthearted is being able to share that gift with others. In my personal life, I have found that when I am grateful for what I have, I am less stingy with my energy. I can give that extra compliment, truly be happy for my friends’ and family’s achievements, I can speak blessings into someone’s life, and be a good listening ear.
Which brings me to the crux of the message I want to send to you today, using this brilliant quote:
“If you ever start taking things too seriously, just remember that we are talking monkeys on an organic spaceship flying through the universe” ~ Joe Rogan
Stay organically opulent,
Goldie Wollman
