Unclear of what you need in life?
Give these 3 audits a try
Hi friends,
Do you feel the need to change something in your life but can’t figure out what? Do you feel a bit all over the place?
I’ve felt that way before and was desperate for clarity.
Figuring out what you are missing or what is misaligned is quite a challenge these days. There are simply too many distractions that cloud our focus - ones that we invite intentionally as well as those we unintentionally let into our lives.
With so much to sort through and never enough time, where do you start?
I would like to share 3 areas where you should consider auditing / deep cleaning to get the most bang out of your buck (time is money $$):
Your information diet
Your inner circle/community
Your daily/regular habits
Your information diet
Content is everywhere. There is so much of it and it’s so easily accessible. With brands, writers, marketers, politicians all trying to fight for your attention, it’s hard to be intentional about what you consume and what you give your attention to. The main reason why I chose this as a key area to audit is because your values and thoughts are often a reflection of what you choose to consume.
To do this audit, you can first look at all your sources of information.
Are they diverse? Are they trusted? Do you rely heavily on one source? Are you looking at too many sources?
I used to rely heavily on social media, mainly IG and Facebook, to stay informed and entertained. But after a deep clean, I’ve now diversified my sources to include podcasts, books, email newsletters, LinkedIn, Twitter, Netflix, Youtube and news outlets.
Don’t be afraid to cut down on your sources. Trim down when you find a lot of overlaps and poor quality information.
After looking at your sources, you can dive deeper in who you subscribe to or follow. Evaluate each account and consider these 2 questions:
How do you feel after consuming their content? Energised, inspired or entertained? Or perhaps indifferent or drained?
How well does this account serves its purpose for you?
Everyone’s definition of valuable content might be different. For me, I need content that is educational, energising, entertaining and inspiring - not necessarily at the same time. The key is to notice how you feel after consuming the content and refine your information diet accordingly.
Your inner circle/community
You become what you surround yourself with.
You're the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with - Jim Rohn
Both of these sayings point to the same idea that the people you surround yourself with have a significant influence on your life. They often shape what you do, what you believe and what you think you are capable of.
Relationships are powerful. So in order to use this power wisely, we should look closely at our chosen communities.
Ask yourself: How do you feel around them? Are your needs being met in this relationship? Do your values align?
Not every relationship needs to meet all your needs and expectations. And isolating yourself is not good either because we are social beings after all. But evaluating how each relationship is impacting your life is important for deciding whether to invest more time or simply let go.
Your daily or regular habits
You are what you repeatedly do. This one is pretty obvious - our daily activities make a huge impact how focused we are.
For this audit, I would start by listing out the habits in key buckets that sustain my physical and mental wellbeing. The key areas for me are diet, sleep, exercise, emotional management and creative release.
From the list, I would look at 2 main things: consistency and quality.
Am I doing enough? Am I nourishing my mind and body? Am I engaging in poor and destructive habits?
Ideally after this exercise, you will come up with three lists: habits that you want to stop doing, start doing and to continue doing.
Ultimately, an effective audit / deep clean requires you to be introspective and mindful. If the prompts I’ve mentioned become too much, you can always simplify it and channel Marie Kondo’s KonMari method.
Keep only those things that speak to the heart, and discard items that no longer spark joy. Thank them for their service – then let them go.
Let me know if you try any of these audits. I would love to hear about your process and what you discovered through the process.
This week’s collection
📼 Video: You’re going to forget this video by Nathan Zed
I’ve subscribed to Nathan for a while now and this video reminded me of why I did. Hah see what I did there. Anyways, I absolutely love his monologues and editing style - he always seems to bring a fresh perspective to any topic.
🛏️ LinkedIn Post: 7 types of rest
I came across this post on LinkedIn from Ben Meer on how to deal with burnout inspired by Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith’s work on the 7 types of rest. After reading this post, I’ve found myself being more precise about what kind of rest I need and how I can get that rest.
🎤Album: Smithereens by Joji
I’ve been so excited for this album and it didn’t disappoint. The vibes of the album work really well with the cooler fall weather.
ICYMI: In last week’s newsletter, I shared 3 mistakes I made while trying to get back on track after a break and how I learned to fix them.
A question for you!
What do you need more clarity on?
Always open to learning more and hearing from you 😊
Thanks for reading!
Stay inspired,
Viv