30 Tips for an Extraordinary Life

This one is for you.   Yes, you.

I know that life can be frustrating and scary and overwhelming sometimes.  I know that pulling up the covers, or numbing the pain with one too many glasses of wine, or distracting ourselves by always being busy doing insignificant shit, is tempting.  I know that rousing ourselves to believe that we are enough and deserving of love can seem exhausting.  I know that having big, bold, audacious dreams can seem lonely sometimes.

Believe me, I know.

The thing is, gorgeous, that this is our life.  This is our shot.  This is our chance at being kind and brilliant and compassionate.  Our time to love hard, and kick our heels up, and create art, and change lives.  Our time to nurture family, and believe in the underdog, and dance naked in the moonlight.

You don’t have to be perfect.  You don’t have to be right. You just have to be as fully YOU as you can be, because that is your gift to share with the rest of us.

Just you.  You all of the time: in celebration, in pain, in joy, in acceptance.

And on that note, I’d like to share 30 tips to help you lead an extraordinary life by embracing YOU in all your glory. Get ready to glow, sunshine!

1. Practice radical acceptance towards yourself and others.
2. Stop trying to control everything.
3. Laugh.  A lot.
4. Balance your input (reading, watching, learning) with your output (creating, giving, leading).
5. Take amazing care of your body: eat clean, floss, practice yoga, don’t smoke, breathe deeply, be mindful of alcohol, visit the doctor, eat less, move more, sleep 8 hours, get massages, and learn to listen to your inner signals.
6. Celebrate your successes. Celebrate others’ successes.
7. Embrace your strengths and stop worrying so much about your weaknesses.
8. Tell the truth.  Even at work.  Especially with those you love. Most importantly, with yourself.
9. Set boundaries with your time, energy and money.  Respect them.
10. Be colorful.
11. Create meaningful connections and nurture the heck out of them.
12. Save a chunk of your money and give away another chunk. Use the rest on things, adventures, treats, and necessities that truly please you.  Be a conscious consumer.
13. Stop freakin’ comparing yourself to others.
14. Speak up, sing loudly, and raise your voice if something needs saying.
15. Don’t be afraid to love with abandon.  Love is a renewable resource and yes, your heart is resilient.
16. Go outside and play.
17. Ignore the haters. It’s your life, your legacy, your choice.
18. Explore your spirituality.  Connect with something larger than yourself.
19. Share your story.
20. Get clear on your top 8 values.  Honor them daily.
21. Find your balance of deliberate action and spontaneous fun.
22. Challenge the status quo.
23. Be a hero to someone.
24. Practice kindness.
25. Stop taking yourself so seriously.
26. Take your dreams very seriously.
27. Act with personal integrity and be quick to admit mistakes.  Clean up your own messes.
28. Cultivate mindfulness.
29. Seek and spread inspiration.
30. Fall in love with yourself a little more each day: treat yourself kindly, protect your passions, allow yourself space to grow, believe in your gifts, tend your gardens. Fierce love, baby, fierce love.