30 Ways to Live Your Best Life

It’s completely okay to get lazy and take some time off, especially when you have one of those days when you’re just not feeling it. However, you should also know that life isn’t stopping for anyone, not even for you. In learning how to get your life together, you’re the one who decides when you’re ready. And if you’re reading this, it looks like the time for change is approaching.

How to get your life together

Almost everyone goes through a phase where they don’t care about what they’re going to accomplish in life. After all, it’s always fun to go partying and end up blackout drunk on your couch – until it’s not. This go-with-the-flow mindset might be fun for a short while, but you’ll eventually find yourself exhausted by this lifestyle.

While it comes with no regrets, it does leave you with genuine life lessons. You might think back and realize, “Shit, I’m going to be twenty-six, and I haven’t done anything.” Panic then starts to settle in and you get the urge to get your life together. This is the moment you realize you might’ve just screwed everything up.

However, you didn’t mess your life up.

No textbook tells you how you should be living life, and if there is, well, don’t read it. Everyone’s pace in life is different and there’s no reason why you should compare.

It might take you a while, but it’s never too late to figure out how to get your life together.

In this feature, we’ll guide you through everything you need to know on how to get your life together. You might be starting late, but better late than never, right?

1. Make your bed
This sounds weird, but it’s not! Making your bed has this peculiar way of making you feel productive, even if all you did is fix your bedsheets and pillows.

It’s a great way to start your day – not just to make your bed look good, but to sharpen your mind first thing in the morning.

2. Get yourself a planner
Who knew being an adult would need this much organization, but the older you get, the more things you have on your plate.

Don’t just get yourself a planner, but actually push through in using it. Whether it’s your thoughts throughout the day or your to-do list, start scribbling things down.

3. Create small goals
No, you don’t need to plan to climb Mount Everest *unless you want to*. These goals shouldn’t be huge. Instead, they should be small and achievable.

Goals make you feel like you’ve got your life together as it gives you a sense of direction and purpose.

Even if your goals are as simple as working out in the morning or finishing a book, they can still improve your life in the smallest ways.

4. Organize your space
When you have a lot of clutter surrounding you, it doesn’t just affect your space, but it affects your ability to think clearly. There’s no need to hoard things you barely need, whether it’s all the shoes, clothes, or other material objects you’re not using anymore.

We’re not saying you need to go entirely minimalistic on your home – but you do need to declutter and organize your space. You’ll feel yourself being able to think better once you’ve done this.

5. Get a plant
That’s right; get yourself a fern – or any other real plant. Getting a plant helps you learn to take responsibility in your life that isn’t as heavy as getting a dog or caring for a child.

They do need to be watered constantly and tended to, but it’s a manageable first step. If you can manage to keep a plant alive, you’re one step closer to getting your life together.

6. Don’t use a relationship to fix your life
As blissful as a relationship sounds, it’s not the key to getting your life together.

In fact, you might even project some of your personal issues into your current partner if you jump into a relationship to fix your life. A relationship will only do more damage than good when attempting to get your life together.

7. Watch your self-talk
It’s funny how language can affect the way we think about ourselves. No matter how many people criticize you, no one can be as harsh as the way you are to yourself. Instead of talking down on yourself constantly, try changing your approach entirely.

If you wouldn’t talk that way to a best friend who’s going through something, then why would you be so harsh on yourself? Give yourself a little credit because you’re more than your negative traits, even if you don’t see it yet.

8. Surround yourself with the right people
The people you surround yourself with have the capacity to define which direction you’re going towards. If you keep surrounding yourself with people who do nothing but party and do whatever they please, you’ll never achieve your ambitions and success by hanging around them.

Surround yourself with people who make you feel good but most importantly, who bring out your best potential. It’s easy to find people who are fun to be with, but it’s more challenging to find those who have the right set of values and mindsets that will encourage your growth.

9. Let go of the past
Yes, you should have done this or that… we know, we know. However, you can’t change the past no matter how much you dwell on it. The only thing it will do is make you feel stuck in your ways, which isn’t a way to live your life.

If you’re serious about accomplishing something in your life, think of the impact that living in the past will do on your life. Instead of holding on to it, the best thing you can do is to let it all go.

10. Stop complaining
We all know how easy it is to complain about everything wrong with our lives. However, complaining can trigger a negative mindset and it’s the exact opposite of what gratitude provides.

Instead of focusing on the things you lack, why don’t you try focusing on the things you already have? This switch of mindset can do so much if you want to know how to get your life together.

11. Focus on gratitude
We’ve mentioned above that complaining won’t get you anywhere, but you need to focus on gratitude instead.

If you’re wondering how to get your life together, remember that chasing happiness isn’t going to make you happy or bring your shit together. If you think happiness is a destination, think again.

A lot of people think they have to chase happiness without realizing that it’s a decision they have to make every day. Even if you’re surrounded with confusion and uncertainty, you’re capable of achieving joy if you just focus on gratitude instead.

12. Self-reflect
Self-reflection is something you constantly see in the world of self-help, but it takes skill and patience to master. Where were you last year? How have you changed since then? Are you accepting of who you are and your flaws? These are some of the questions you need to ask yourself if you want to learn how to get your life together.

It’s difficult to be introspective with yourself, but you need to ask yourself even the hard questions if you want to become better.

13. Move your body
Your mind and body are interconnected whether you like it or not. It’s the reason why a physical activity like exercise makes you feel more productive and energized compared to a lifestyle without it.

If you want to learn how to get your life together, incorporating physical activity into your routine is the best way to achieve that. We know it sounds dull, but when you feel amazing, you won’t regret it.

14. Focus on your passions
You may not be doing a job you like, and that’s okay. Most of us are working jobs we don’t necessarily love, but we don’t have many options. If you do have time to spare, don’t forget to spend time on the things that fuel your soul with fire and passion.

Even if it’s something as mundane as writing a poem, you’ll never regret spending time with the things that make you feel alive.

15. Remind yourself that you don’t know everything
The more you expose yourself to different experiences and learnings, the more you realize that you don’t know even half of everything there is to know – not even close.

There are some things you simply don’t know, and that’s completely okay. If you want to get your life together, accept the things you don’t know and be open to learning them.

16. Let go of destructive habits
Your habits have the capacity to make or break your entire progress. Destructive habits such as drinking or partying will do more damage to your progress, especially in the long run.

Instead, choose to turn around your habits and incorporate healthier ones such as journaling and exercise.

17. Change your environment
Just like you should surround yourself with the right people, your environment also plays a part in your progress. If you’re in an environment that no longer supports your growth, then maybe it’s time to change your surroundings.

If it’s possible, you can move to a new city or change your living conditions if it’s no longer working for you.

18. Stop overthinking
Whether you’re an anxious person or not, overthinking is a natural tendency, especially when you’re figuring out how to get your life together. However, you won’t resolve anything by overthinking. More likely, you’re just giving yourself irrational scenarios to stress over that may or may not be true.

Your thoughts are the most powerful factor that plays a part in which direction you’re headed towards. By listening to your negative thoughts, you’ll never get your life together.

19. Take action
The best way to get your life together is to do the necessary action to get there. Do you want a job? Fix your resume and go on several interviews. Do you want to be happier? Do the things that make you happy.

Life is much simpler than everyone’s making it out to be. If you want something, the only way to get there is to try and chase it yourself.

20. Create a morning routine
As mundane and dull as a morning routine is, this can give you a sense of normality throughout your day that kickstarts your productivity and motivation. This is why most successful people have some form of routine before they begin their efficient day.

It doesn’t have to be anything grand – it can be something as simple as getting breakfast and writing on your gratitude journal.

21. Aim for progress, not perfection
If you’re a perfectionist or someone who wants things done a certain way, it’s easy to obsess over the small details.

However, you won’t achieve anything when you focus on perfectionism, given that it’s an impossible standard to achieve. As long as you focus on your progress, no matter how long it takes you, that should be enough.

22. Get out of your comfort zone
Your comfort zone isn’t a place where you can grow and learn how to get your life together. It might feel safe and familiar, but you won’t learn the lessons you need, in a place of comfort.

Face your fears and do the things you used to hesitate on – this is the only way to open yourself to several opportunities that could end up making things better for you.

23. Ask for help
It’s not the easiest thing to ask for help, especially if your pride and ego are getting in the way. However, would you rather live a miserable life because you didn’t ask for help, or live your best life because you were humble enough to ask for help?

The latter would be better for your own self-improvement, so whether it’s asking help from your parents, siblings, or friends, don’t hesitate to do so.

24. Stop taking everything personally
Not everything is about you and until you realize this, you’re always going to take everything personally. When your partner gets upset or when a hiring manager doesn’t call for an interview, it’s not automatically a reflection of your worst traits.

You’ll never reach the point of maturity if you don’t stop this kind of personalization.

25. Set boundaries
The difference between people who have their shit together and people who don’t is their ability to set boundaries. If you keep letting others disrespect you and get frustrated as soon as they do, you won’t figure out how to get your life together.

It all starts by drawing the line between what you’re willing to accept and what you aren’t.

26. Say yes to opportunities
Grab that job, say yes to uncertainty, and don’t be afraid to go for new opportunities. Of course, this doesn’t apply to saying yes to things that take your life on a downward spiral, but this goes for everything that will help you grow.

Don’t hesitate to say yes to all kinds of career opportunities that present themselves to you, because you never know if one of them could be the right fit that nudges you in the right direction.

27. Understand the consequences
Accountability is one word you need to master if you want to learn how to get your life together. This means that every mistake or wrong decision leads to a certain consequence – and this is something you have to live with.

Only in learning to be accountable can you take full responsibility for your actions and learn to accept them.

28. Let go of the things you can’t control
No matter how much you want to, you really can’t control everything. Instead, you must learn to accept the things you can’t change and focus instead on the things you can.

The more you focus on things you can’t control, the more you’ll feel frustrated by them.

29. Track your progress
On your road to personal development, tracking your progress helps you stay motivated in moving forward and pushing towards a better life.

Every time you think there’s no progress or that your effort is useless, you need something to prove otherwise. You can track your progress on your journal, on your phone, or anywhere really.

30. Delay gratification
You’ve been so used to instant gratification, but now it’s time to delay that to achieve your ambitions and goals instead. If you keep your focus on superficial things like your Instagram followers or the next party with your friends, you’ll never accomplish anything.

This is one of the situations where you should say no if it means pushing yourself towards success.

So, how do you fix your life back together?

If you want to learn how to get your life together, you need to be willing to sacrifice comfort and familiarity for growth and success.

Nobody ever said fixing your life and making yourself proud was easy, but it’s a journey that you’re going to thank yourself for eventually.

Now you have the tools to know how to get your life together. It may be a challenge in the beginning, but once things settle down, you’ll be happy you pushed through the obstacles.