Pearl Nash
Living in alignment is a goal we should all be aiming for!
It means to be in a state of harmony and peace because we’re leading the lives we actually want to be living…
…And feeling like what we do is true to who we are.
The good news? We can all get to this point!
Here are 10 important tips that will help you to live in alignment with your true self.
1) Stop thinking about what others think
If you’re guilty of caring about what others think, join the club!
In my experience, it’s a constant work in progress to try and care less about what other people think.
I often find myself wondering what specific people would make about certain decisions of mine…
…From friends I no longer hear from to members of my extended family!
In all honesty, caring so much about other people’s opinions can be totally debilitating.
Spending so much time wondering what other people think of me causes me to second guess the things I actually want to do.
Rather than just going for things I want to do, I can find myself pausing and thinking: what would they say about this?
If you find yourself doing the same, it might suggest that you’re not allowing yourself to live in alignment with your true self…
…And you’re causing yourself to adapt to please others.
So what is the answer?
Become really conscious about the fact you’re doing this…
…And simply decide that you’re going to act on your dreams and desires.
It’s important to remember that only you have to live your life!
2) Follow your joy
When we’re living in our authenticity, we are joyous!
You see, joy should be a part of our everyday experience if we are in alignment.
I’m sure you can think about times you haven’t felt joy when you’ve been doing things you don’t want to be doing… versus times when you feel complete joy from doing what you love to do.
In my experience, there have been so many times in my life that I’ve felt such a lack of joy when doing things that are out of alignment.
For instance, my old job used to suck the life out of me!
It indicated I was out of alignment with my true self. My true self desires creativity and I was doing a job that was zapped of anything creatively stimulating.
So, what does this mean for you?
If you want to live a life that is truly in alignment with your true self, it’s important to think about where you find the greatest sense of joy.
Now, it might be that many things bring you joy…
…This is great!
Joy doesn’t have to be limited to one thing.
For example, you might love multiple crafts as much as one another. Good for you if this is the case…
The more joy, the better!
Simply put, you don’t need to just have just one route to joy.
But you do need to have joy!
Make it your mission to find what does bring you joy to help bring you closer to more alignment.
3) Make use of your journal
One way you can start to really connect with what it means to live in alignment is through journaling.
I can’t get enough of journaling…
…It helps me with clarity and working out what makes me feel good.
Truth is, it’s powerful stuff to get your thoughts out on paper and to step back and look at them.
I often find that I get a totally new perspective from seeing my thoughts actually written out in front of me.
If you’re new to journaling, you can start with five or ten minutes a day to get used to the process.
I suggest asking yourself a few core questions for starters:
- What does joy mean to me?
- What does it mean to live in alignment with my truth?
- What is my truth?
Now, these are obviously big questions…
…So don’t expect to get to the answers straight away.
However, you can start to get a greater sense of clarity and to understand yourself that bit better from getting them out!
4) Ask for what you need
Living in alignment means being true to what you want.
It means not being afraid to be honest about your needs.
You see, when you’re not in alignment you can find yourself saying ‘yes’ to things that you don’t actually want to do.
This used to be me!
I used to be someone who just went along with things that others said… And it made me feel flat.
I found myself in so many situations I didn’t want to be in because I hadn’t been true to myself.
Simply put, people-pleasing takes you out of alignment with yourself.
On the other hand, when you follow what makes you feel joyous and you ask for whatever it is you need, it brings you closer to authenticity!
For example, it might be that you need more space from people around you in order to harness your creativity.
If this is the case, you should not be afraid to ask for it…
…Because as you do this, it will bring you to your truth.
5) Follow your heart
Going hand-in-hand with asking for what you want and connecting to what brings you joy is following your heart.
Now, this might sound a little abstract… You might be thinking: but how do I follow my heart?
Well, for starters it is an abstract feeling… But following your heart simply means connecting with your desires.
It means feeling into your heart space, connecting with yourself and allowing your deep desires to drive your decisions.
One way you can connect with your heart is through meditation and the stillness it presents.
You see, if you create space and quietness, you can begin to hear what it is you want.
On the other hand, if you are just surrounded by outside noise and opinions, it can become hard to connect with yourself and your truth.
I suggest meditating first thing in the morning and setting an intention to connect to your heart space if you want to gain more alignment.
You can use the time to ask yourself questions, such as:
- What do I really want?
- What feels good for me?
- Where do I want to go?
These questions will begin to illuminate what your heart really wants… And it will allow you to cut through the external noise outside of you!
6) Give yourself a break
There is so much magic in pausing and taking a break.
We live in a culture of hustling and being busy…
…In fact, being busy is worn like a badge of honor by many people.
I can think of so many friends that begin a phone call by telling me just how busy they’ve been, like it’s something they’re proud of.
You could almost say that we live in a culture where being successful goes hand-in-hand with being busy!
But there is a problem with being busy.
If we’re just flat-out busy all the time, it doesn’t allow us to stop and connect with ourselves…
…Now, while you might not notice a disconnect with yourself straightaway, it will compound over time.
You’ll gradually become more out of alignment with your true nature if you don’t allow yourself to slow down and actually be with yourself.
In my experience, if you don’t take the time to check-in with yourself regularly, you’ll likely wake up one day and realize that you’ve been living out of alignment all of this time.
I say this because I’ve been there!
It was as though one day it suddenly dawned on me that years had passed and time had slipped away… And I’d not been doing what I actually wanted to be doing!
To prevent this from happening, give yourself space to connect with yourself regularly so you can be in tune with your truth!
7) Remember what you like to do
There are many reasons why we can feel as though we lose our sense of self.
It might be that you lose yourself to a relationship or that you pour so much time into a profession and attach your identity to what you do…
…In other words, we can lose track of who we really are through external factors.
Now, don’t feel bad if this has happened to you!
I’ve also been there.
Instead, remember that you can get your sense of self back by connecting with what it is you like to do…
…If you’re struggling to even thinkabout what it is you like to do, return to your journal and write down things that make you happy.
Maybe it’s creating art, maybe it’s spending time in nature, maybe it’s traveling!
It could be all of these things.
Now, think about the last time you did these things and make a pact with yourself to do them more!
You see, the more we do the things that we really want to be doing, the more in alignment we find ourselves.
8) Spend more time by yourself
There is something so empowering about being comfortable with your own company…
…And in having the ability to do what you want to do without anyone else telling you how you should live your life.
What’s more, I find that when I’m by myself I get to connect with my truth more than ever.
It’s as though I get to know myself better and better in solitude.
What does this mean for you?
If you don’t already spend a lot of time by yourself, decide that now is the time to start getting comfortable with doing it!
The more time you spend by yourself, the more you’ll feel as though you’re able to get closer to learning what your true alignment is.
Who knows, you might learn that your truth is something quite different to what you’d been telling yourself.
You probably know what I’m going to say next:
I found this to be true for myself!
9) Respect your boundaries
Similar to asking for what you want is being comfortable with setting boundaries.
These could be emotional, energetic or physical boundaries.
Simply put, boundaries are blocks we put up to stop other people dictating the way we live our lives and to protect ourselves.
Boundaries should be seen as positive forces!
They allow us to put our needs first…
…And to be true to what it is we want and need.
For instance, I’ve learned that it’s alright to say ‘no’ to invitations when they come my way if I need time by myself to do what I need to do.
I used to feel really bad about turning things down and I’d end up struggling with the fear of missing out (FOMO)…
…But now I’ve learned to manage FOMO and to trust my intuition when it says that I need to do something for myself.
These days, before I say ‘yes’ to something, I think about what I really need and I establish my boundaries.
What’s more, I stick to them!
10) Identify when you’re feeling out of alignment
Now, I’ve spoken about all of the ways that can help you identify what it feels like to be in alignment…
…But I also suggest that you think about the times you’ve felt out of alignment to actually help you connect with a sense of alignment.
It might sound backwards, but stay with me:
By thinking about all of the times you’ve not felt in alignment, it can help you to get clear on where alignment lies for you.
Grab your journal and make a list of all of the times you’ve recently connected to the feeling of being out of alignment.
Maybe it was on a date with a person, maybe it was when you had to go to the office, maybe it was when you were in a certain area…
…Make a list as long as you need it to be!
Now, look closely at the list and see what the patterns are.
Ask yourself: what am I doing when I feel out of alignment? Where am I and who am I with?
You can use this list to get a greater sense of clarity on what doesn’t feel good and true to you…
…To help you find your truth!
