I am currently on holiday, reading some great books, spending time with my family and indulging in rest, relaxation and rejuvenation. This time of year when I am not on the road is important to me as it gives me time to Focus on my own self-development, creates space to develop new ideas and programmes and gives me real quality time to spend with my wife and children.

Although I planned my business and my life to work like this, I still feel a huge sense of gratitude. A sense of gratitude that I can spend this amazing time with my family, a sense of gratitude that I can enrich my mind and a sense of gratitude that all of this will enable me to help others be more, do more and have more in their lives.

One of my favourite gigs of last year was an unpaid one at a local school. I spoke with the 6th form on how to have the mental toughness to walk their own path and connect with what is truly important to them. For the last year, barely a week has gone by when I have not been recognised and thanked for how much it helped them focus both before and during their exams. To be able to help in this way is humbling.

As you know, most of my clients are corporate clients who book me to focus on mental toughness and sales via my motivational talks and coaching. During these talks and sessions many things are shared depending upon the audience and, in this spirit of sharing, I thought I would share 37 principles for living an Amazing Life that I have learnt and taught over the years that have made a significant difference in mine and other peoples’ lives…

1. Get up every day and be grateful for what you have. Focusing on what you don’t have is an energy sucker. Start from a place of gratitude and you will be more motivated and achieve more.
2. Spend time getting in touch with what is truly important to you. Our values shape and drive us. Stop living someone else’s life and live your own.
3. Success is defined by you. Only you know what will make you happy, make you content and satisfy you. Take time to define your success.
4. Use visualisation. Proper use of visualisation techniques for goal setting, future pacing, practising and rehearsal is paramount for success.
5. Talk positively to yourself. Stop beating yourself up verbally and be your own best success coach. Silence your inner critic and embrace the cheerleader within.
6. See other peoples’ perspectives. People do things for a reason. Work out what it is. You will find it easier to connect with friends, family, colleagues, staff…
7. Save money at the start of every month. Money is a poor motivator. Many people do things for money. That is not the path to happiness. Focus on creating a financial cushion so that you have more choices and are less focused on making a quick buck.
8. Lose the technology. Give 100% attention to people. Turn of the darn tech and focus on really connecting with those around you.
9. Listen.
10. Seek to understand what people are really saying and stop translating it into your language and your model of the world. Take a trip to theirs.
11. Do one thing at a time. Really. It’s liberating.
12. Get fit. It’s important. Really important. Eat well, sleep well, exercise well. Move. Every day.
13. Spend time with your kids. You can buy them the world but they just want your time and your love. They’d rather play hand made games with you than bank emptying games by themselves.
14. Spend time with your parents. They have feelings for you no-one else ever will and they won’t be here for ever.
15. Know that love is a verb. It’s not a noun. It’s a set of actions. It’s how you behave. You create it. It’s not something that happens to you. Spend quality time with your partners or significant others.
16. Be authentic. Be yourself. Live your live. Remember Polonius.
17. Focus on activities not results. Activities drive habits and habits drive results. Focus on what you need to do daily to be the person that you want to be.
18. Be polite. Say thank you. Say please. Manners cost nothing. But they mean everything. Politeness sets you apart.
19. Help someone. Help anyone. Do you know someone who could do with a hand? Family? Friend? Neighbour? Wider community? A more connected community starts with you. A better society starts with simple actions.
20. Give money regularly. Give to charity. Give to the poor. Give to people less fortunate than you.
21. Be positive. Focus on positivity. See possibility. Practise being positive until you just do it naturally. Being positive is a habit. One worth cultivating.
22. Be in the moment. Be present. Savour life. Notice the small things as well as the big ones. Take in the dew on the grass, the wind in your hair, the beauty of a sunset… Don’t let life pass you by.
23. Smile.
24. Breathe. Spend time breathing. Get air in your lungs. Close your eyes. Focus. Even if only for 15 seconds.
25. Take action. The best action is the one you do. Don’t wait for perfection and end up procrastinating and prevaricating. Get out in the world and take action. Do something. Do anything.
26. Read every day. Read personal development books, biographies, subject matter books, fiction. Just read. Apart from helping you relax and focus, reading also keeps you on top of your game and might well help stave off many diseases.
27. Don’t do technology in bed. Seriously. It’s bad for sleep, it’s bad for posture and it’s bad for your sex life.
28. Protect your thinking. It’s the most important thing you have along with your health. Don’t let others infect you with negativity or destructive mental patterns and thoughts.
29. Take responsibility. If you want love, money, success, happiness, joy… take responsibility for it. 100% responsibility. Stop blaming others. Your life has nothing to do with them, it’s down to you.
30. Give compliments every day.
31. Give 100% and when you’re done, stop. If something is worth doing, do it well. Then do something else.
32. Do less. Do it better. Stop rushing. Work out what is really important. Do that.
33. Spend time on personal development. Have a vision for your life, set goals, define daily actions, hold yourself accountable, keep a record, visualise, form a mastermind team.
34. Spend time with inspirational people. You become most like the people you spend the most time with… you know that.
35. Hug. Hold hands. Kiss. Embrace. Maybe not random strangers but definitely those that you love.
36. Do one act of random kindness every day.
37. Work hard. Be the best that you can be. Make your work your masterpiece, whatever it is. Be the best salesperson you can be, or the best managing director, or the best firefighter, or the best dish washer…

I never used to write lists. I was too worried about them being the perfect list. Too concerned about what I might have omitted. But it doesn’t matter. This is my list of 27 Principles For Living An Amazing Life today… and therefore it’s perfect. Hopefully you found it useful.

For more from me, join my success newsletter.

The post 37 Principles For Living An Amazing Life appeared first on Gavin Ingham | Motivational Speaker, Conference Speaker & Coach..