How Equipped Are You for Life?

What does it take to be ready for life?

This is where we need to start in order to understand what it really means to be prepared for life.

Life happens every day, here and now — yesterday and today. All the time, with every breath, smile, and feeling that exists within us and is shown outwardly. What happens within us is shown outwardly, and this made me curious about how well prepared we really are for life out there in the big world.

Are We Becoming Less Active in Our Choices?

Since so much is available to us on a screen, which has become almost like an extra body part, I get the feeling that we are becoming less and less active in our choices and in our learning.

Unfortunately, it becomes a vicious circle that needs to be broken.

To be able to handle what life sometimes really throws at us, we need to have been active in our choices — both big and small. Without these conscious choices, and instead following the choices society pushes upon us, we can easily become helpless.

I am far from painting a frightening scenario. Instead, I want to awaken the thought of what happens when life gives you a cold shower.

What do you do?

How do you act and react?

What Happens When Life Becomes Uncomfortable?

If difficult situations come one after another without your permission, do you have enough strength within you to resist the feeling of injustice?

The goal is not to create fear. The goal is to broaden our understanding.

When we understand more, we begin to feel that we have greater freedom to act. We also reduce the worry of always having to rely on others.

Considering how quickly the world has changed lately, it is even more important to become aware of our choices rather than simply doing what society more or less dictates:

The best possible approach is to broaden our knowledge and skills by activating life.

This happens when we increase our understanding and begin to see the connections between different parts of life.

Are You Actively Living or Simply Consuming Life?

Laziness makes us less prepared.

We consume life without really reflecting on what we are doing.

But perhaps, now that you have come this far, your thoughts are beginning to awaken. Insights are making themselves known, and from now on you may begin to approach life with other factors that influence how you act.

It is about activating life.

This means trying more than simply complaining that the remote control is too far away, that the cushion is the wrong colour, or that the soap has run out.

Be a little more prepared, and the weight on your shoulders becomes lighter.

Not immediately — because that is impossible.

Slowly, something begins to happen within us.

What Kind of Knowledge Do We Really Need?

By taking a moment to think, we discover that more is waiting for us.

The feeling spreads as we begin to see that together we can slowly change what we think we understand by actually gathering knowledge.

By knowledge, I mean essential basic knowledge for a freer life.

Being able to name items of clothing does not give us a stable foundation to stand on. Neither does being able to list a hundred clothing brands.

The point of acquiring basic knowledge is to understand things that can genuinely help us navigate life.

How does electricity work?

How does water purification work?

What should we know about first aid when something urgent happens?

How do the organs in our body work?

How can we cook over an open fire?

Sometimes, preparedness can be as simple as having books at home that can be read, or having a needle and thread to sew on a button.

Then there are practical skills: changing a tyre on a car, fixing a flat tyre on a bicycle, or knowing how to put out a fire in the kitchen.

The Skills We Have Slowly Stopped Using

How many of these things do people actually think about — and how many can they actually do?

Considering that life is easier on many levels today, these skills no longer have the same importance.

And, if we are really being blunt about it, what we think are our interests and important areas are not always the things that truly prepare us for life.

When everything becomes too easy, we need to find other ways to fill our time.

Often, that means turning to a screen or convincing ourselves that something is important when, perhaps, it really isn't.

Start Activating Your Life

So create a preparedness for life.

Spend time in nature and see the stability that the trees offer.

Light a fire and grill outdoors in the forest instead of relying only on an electric grill at home — an activity that requires us to know very little about how things actually work.

Go to the store and buy knitting needles and yarn. Knit your own scarf for colder days.

Use pen and paper to make sure your finger dexterity remains.

Train the mental side by trying new things.

By doing this, we become stronger.

And the next time life throws a cold shower at you, you know that it is okay.

It may be uncomfortable in the moment, but it can give you more than you think.

Life Is Waiting for You

Go out into life with open arms.

Embrace the opportunities that are out there, far away from laziness.

Be curious. Learn. Try. Make conscious choices.

Prepare yourself not by living in fear of what might happen, but by becoming more capable of responding when life does not go according to plan.

Life is waiting for you.