HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OUT OF LIFE

Many times, I have wondered what it takes to living a fulfilled life. I talk to a lot of old people and everything they keep saying revolves almost around the same things.

I have interacted with older people for many years, and many times, it seems to me that they think they had not made the most out of their lives. Out of everything they had said, I have come up with nine important things to do to make the most out of your life.

1. Get education.

"Education may not put you at any advantage, but ignorance would put you at a disadvantage." Francis Anuma.

In some parts of the world, they think education is the number one way to succeed in life, but I don't think so. Education may not necessarily make you successful in life, but it is still important. Getting an education would give you a broad view about life. You won't be ignorant about a lot of things.

It would put you at an advantage of meeting new people who may be important to you later in life. Also, education would give you the ability of being able to do something differently. When you compare an educated person and an illiterate person doing the same thing, you tend to discover that the educated one usually has an edge. Older uneducated people always tend to regret not having an education, even if they are successful. To make the most out of your life, get an education.

2. Value time.

For those who don't value their time, they end up wasting away their lives in bits and pieces. Time is money and money is time. I have discovered that when you don't have anything tangible to do with your time, people will hijack it and make it theirs. You then discover that you would be going all over the place fulfilling people's dreams, while your own remain.

Apart from valuing time, manage yourself in time, so as to be able to be doing the right things at the right age. It is not good enough to just be entering higher institution when your colleagues have finished their second degrees. In making the most out of your life, value your time well.

3. Take religion seriously.

Religion is one of the most important pillars of life. Even atheists who abhor religion are guided by morals, which has it's roots in religion. Religion gives a person the opportunity to know the external and spiritual forces and laws guiding life. Even though religion is manipulated into fanaticism sometimes, religion is still a potent weapon into guiding people into living good lives.

If you are a christian, go to church, join a unit and be active. If you are a muslim, go to mosque and try to fullfil your religious obligations, and if you are in any other, be diligent in it. The God-factor is important in people's lives. In making the most out of life, take religion serious.

4. Take your health serious.

Most times in life, I find out that our productivity is always a function of how healthy we are. It is only when you are healthy that you can pursue wealth. Nobody who is sick can think of pursuing wealth. I observe that people don't start taking their health serious, until when they get old and it is already too late.

If you don't take your health serious when you are young, you would most likely pay for it when you are older. Living a moderate lifestyle in what you eat and drink, how you eat and drink it, and being able to control stress matters so much. It is better to take your health and lifestyle seriously, as the quality of life you will live depends on it.

5. Discover your talent and skill.

" Work may prosper you, but talent will fulfill you." Francis Anuma.

I see a lot of people prosper and succeed in life, and still, they don't feel fulfilled about it. Many times, I hear very rich people sometimes say they wished they were something which I think is absurd. Sometimes you could hear a company executive say he wishes he had pursued a painting, or a writing career. There is no big deal in that. It only shows that that is where his fulfillment lies.

Discover your talent or skill and pursue it or them with all vigour. Believe me, that is where your fulfillment lies. To make the most out of life, discover your talent and gifts.

6. Learn a skill.

Learning is skill in life can never be a waste, and it will always come in handy to bail you out of financial embarassments. This is important, especially in countries where the people are more than the available job. Learning a skill and making money out of it doesn't really have to be full-time. You could be working or schooling, and still be learning a skill.

Whatever you learn will always be a part of you, and nobody can take it away from you. Your skill could give you some extra income, and make it possible for you not to be financially broke. A lot of old folks regret the fact that they didn't learn a skill when they were younger. Don't be discouraged. It is never too late to learn that skill.

7. Family is important.

A lot of people just go through life chasing their work and their dreams, usually at the expense of their families. I didn't say it is wrong to chase personal goals, but not at the expense of family. People who neglect their families always usually regret doing that now or later. Family is usually where it all begins. Charity begins in the home.

A lot of people are good outside and are bad at home. This isn't supposed to be. Treat your siblings well. Treat your parents well. Treat your extended family well. When it comes to looking down memory lane at whether people had made the most out of life, family issues are one of the most important things that keeps coming up.

8. Make and keep good friends.

"He that cannot make a friend will eat his cake alone." Francis Anuma.

Life is about meeting people and forming relationships, some lasting and some temporary. It is virtually impossible to go through life without having a friend or friends. Forming good friends alone is not enough, but keeping those friends. Good friends will stand by you in times when you are down and out. Good friends will get your back.

Most importantly, you wouldn't have to go through your old age a lonely person. A person who can't make and keep friends will have a very lonely and boring old age.

9. Prepare for old age.

"Today is nothing but the preparation for tomorrow." Francis Anuma.

As people get older, they start to get more scared about life. Why? Because they hadn't prepared adequately for it. A see a lot of dynamics in the society today in which old people are still labouring and struggling to get by in life. When people are still labouring when they are supposed to be resting, it means something had gone wrong along the way.

The future is not meant to be afraid of, but to be prepared for. Prepare for the future financially, as there wouldn't be that youthful strength to be able to work and make money. Prepare for companionship, as loneliness and boredom and the two biggest nightmare of old people. To make the most out of your life, prepare well for the future.
Thanks for reading this.