10 Things To Let Go Of When You’re Ready To Become A Better You
1. Let go of the expectation that you need to have your life all figured out.
Not even people in their 50s have everything figured out. You just keep growing and keep learning, but you can’t put that unnecessary pressure and expectation upon yourself.
2. Let go of romanticizing being “too busy” for taking a break.
There’s nothing wrong with being filled with ambition and drive, especially when it comes to your career. However, it isn’t healthy to be consumed with your work 24/7. This isn’t good for your mental health. In fact, work is often used as a distraction to avoid dealing with internal conflict in our personal lives.
3. Let go of trying to please everyone, even the people that don’t matter.
The general rule is that you can’t please everyone, no matter how hard you try. Even if your life depended on pleasing everyone, you’d just end up disappointed and defeated. You can’t be everything to everyone all at once. You’re just human, and you’ll end up carrying everyone else’s baggage—and that isn’t fair to you.
4. Let go of trying to control the outcome of your own life.
It’s normal to want to control certain aspects of your own life, but at some point you have to realize that you end up being more frustrated. Some things just happen beyond your own control, and you’re going to have to be okay with that.
5. Let go of the need for validation from significant people in your life.
No matter how talented or extraordinary you are, your worth is not based on the people that can’t see that. There are always going to be people that can’t see your uniqueness, and that’s okay. More importantly, even the people that love you the most won’t praise you the way you expect, and that’s also okay.
6. Let go of trying to save, fix, or change people.
Everyone has someone in their life that they want to make better, especially when it comes to people they love. No matter how much we love someone, we can never save them from their own brokenness. It isn’t our responsibility to change them, but we can be the light that triggers their change.
7. Let go of all the burden that comes with the trauma and abuse in your past.
The fact is we all have a dark past that destroyed us in one way or another. In order to grow into someone better, you need to let go of this and instead use your pain to change your ways. You can never undo the past and you can never get back the person you used to be, but you can use your story to become stronger. Grieve accordingly, and then let it all go.
8. Let go of the need to complain about everything that isn’t going your way.
There are always going to be inconveniences in life. Sometimes you end up late for work and this affects your performance. Or that guy spilled coffee on your shirt. However, this isn’t a free pass to make complaining a habit. Let go of caring about these simple things.
9. Let go of being too complacent in life.
Whether this is in relationships, in your career, or in some other aspect of your life, let go of trying to constantly live in the gray area. Life is meant to be lived outside of your comfort zone, and you can’t expect to get results when you’re not actively going for it. Growth, no matter how scary it can be, isn’t found in the presence of familiarity and comfort.
10. Let go of escaping your internal problems with distractions.
We’re all guilty of doing this, whether it’s using alcohol or using Netflix to escape our thoughts. No matter how much distractions we use, we can never escape the darkness within ourselves if we don’t deal with what’s bothering us. Let go of the need to escape and face your internal conflict with accountability.
