What do you think is most important for one to do in their lifetime to become a well-rounded person?

[Philbo Wiseroot]

As on offshoot of this comment, What do you think is most important for one to do in their lifetime to become a well-rounded person?

 

To sum up my response from the thread:

 

1. Find out what you stand for
2. Volunteer for something
3. Try to keep an open mind treat everything as a potential learning experience.
4. Keep a journal

[brsajo]

These probably overlap in several areas, but here's a few of my thoughts in no particular order:

 

• Live not for yourself, but for others.
• Aim to be a positive presence and someone people look forward to interacting with.
• Do the things you do with an overall purpose of doing good for the world; even small things like doing the dishes without being told will make your parents have one less thing to worry about, for example.
• Have an open mind and have fun!
• Try to have an optimistic point of view on things, but also know that it's perfectly normal to feel down occasionally and there will always be people willing to listen if you need to express it.

[Philbo Wiseroot]

2 hours ago, brsajo said:

These probably overlap in several areas, but here's a few of my thoughts in no particular order:

 

1. Live not for yourself, but for others.
2. Aim to be a positive presence and someone people look forward to interacting with.
3. Do the things you do with an overall purpose of doing good for the world; even small things like doing the dishes without being told will make your parents have one less thing to worry about, for example.
4. Have an open mind and have fun!
5. Try to have an optimistic point of view on things, but also know that it's perfectly normal to feel down occasionally and there will always be people willing to listen if you need to express it.

I love these. On the first one, though, don't focus 100% of your attention on others. Take it from my experience: it'll burn you out quickly and you'll likely go a little mad. I like to sum number 3 up as "there are always eyes on you. Act accordingly".

[Saber_Wing]

1. My first advice is actually the exact opposite of the above posting. Live not for others, but for yourself. That's not to say you shouldn't be sympathetic and kind to others, but they don't dictate how you should live your life. You do. It's very easy to lose sight of that. Don't make the mistake of being so concerned about others, you forget about yourself. If you want to do something for you and only you, that's not selfish. It's logical. It's human. And above all, living your life the way that makes you happy is the most important, at least to me. 

 

2. That being said, be mindful of your emotions and how they affect you. They can be both a blessing and a curse. Be kind, be sad, be angry when you need to, but don't become a slave to any of those feelings, because it's all too easy.

 

3. Enjoy yourself. Laugh. Go for a walk in the sunlight. Have that extra soda you're telling yourself you don't need. Make a life for yourself, but don't forget to live it.

 

 

[Philbo Wiseroot]

18 minutes ago, Saber_Wing said:

1. My first advice is actually the exact opposite of the above posting. Live not for others, but for yourself. That's not to say you shouldn't be sympathetic and kind to others, but they don't dictate how you should live your life. You do. It's very easy to lose sight of that. Don't make the mistake of being so concerned about others, you forget about yourself. If you want to do something for you and only you, that's not selfish. It's logical. It's human. And above all, living your life the way that makes you happy is the most important, at least to me. 

 

2. That being said, be mindful of your emotions and how they affect you. They can be both a blessing and a curse. Be kind, be sad, be angry when you need to, but don't become a slave to any of those feelings, because it's all too easy.

 

3. Enjoy yourself. Laugh. Go for a walk in the sunlight. Have that extra soda you're telling yourself you don't need. Make a life for yourself, but don't forget to live it.

 

 

Points one and two are really what I was getting at with my point above. Live for both, but don't lose sight of putting yourself first a lot of the time. Your health should be your priority. People can look out for themselves.

 

I just found this picture:

[Blue Phoenix Ace]

Travel!

 

I have been super fortunate in my life to go to many different places. When you experience a taste of a variety of cultures, you start to see how messed up things can be at home. You may also gain an appreciation for what you do have.

[Louis On Air]

If you want to keep your situation as it is, take everything in small portions with wide variety. If you want change, work hard and focus.

[brsajo]

7 hours ago, Pufflehugs04 said:

I love these. On the first one, though, don't focus 100% of your attention on others. Take it from my experience: it'll burn you out quickly and you'll likely go a little mad. I like to sum number 3 up as "there are always eyes on you. Act accordingly".

I guess what I mean by live for others isn't that you should be doing people favours all day every day or anything like that. I mean, make your life goal something that would make other people live better lives, rather than something materialistic like, say "I wanna have a nice house with a cool car blah blah blah...". That also doesn't necessarily mean you have to be a doctor or inventor or whatever; if you change the life of even one person, it's mission accomplished! And the great thing is it doesn't stop there, you can achieve that goal several times! If you even just make an effort to be a nice person in your day-to-day activities, you're probably changing the lives of the people you interact with in ways you don't even know.

[Philbo Wiseroot]

Imagine others complexly. The phrase originates from the book Paper Towns by John Green. It means thinking of other people as being sophisticated, the same as you are. In other words, they have dreams, feelings, and aspirations too. The book quote is as follows:

 

Quote

‘As Leo watched people at the bus stop on a foggy London morning, he imagined the pixie-ish girl of about his age complexly, and suddenly felt he understood the wanderlust behind her sullen, deep set eyes.

Had he not imagined her complexly, his thought process could have probably been something a bit more like “She’s probably tired. Kind of pretty, though…” and he would have moved on to the next commuter.’

People aren’t always like you and have different experiences and values, so you must take those into account too. By imagining others complexly, you’re thinking of them as conscious, living people, not “The Other”. By thinking of them as “The Other”, you remove their humanity, and that’s the worst thing you can do to a person.

[Cassiopeia]

I think it's not just the question of actions but more of a way of being. 

 

First of all, everyone is constantly changing so its important to have a sense of direction, to know what are you working towards. Even if it's something small like wanting to have a walk with the dog at the end of the day, having a plan keeps you motivated and active not just physically, but mentally too. Also it's great to choose to change instead of just it happening to you.

 

A regular experience of not knowing everything. Having a regular intellectual stimulation in your life is really important. While you are at school or  college or uni, you don't really realise but it's so easy to sink into a neutral mildness where everything is comfortable or harsh but nothing is really exciting anymore. Accepting that there are things you don't know, and learning to admit when you aren't informed enough to have an opinion on something. 

 

Also what @Saber_Wing already mentioned, but a bit more than just living for yourself. You really need to know what you are and what you are aspiring to be otherwise you can't really be anything to anyone.  In order to give, you have to know what you have and how much of that can you give away without breaking yourself.  The longest human relationship in life is with yourself so you have to put some effort into it.

 

And finally maintaining a diverse bunch of connections with the world. Other people are our mirrors in a way, and the more you get to see the different angles of yourself and your surroundings, the more realistic image you get. Of course you may be just as well covered with less well positioned ones...

 

@Kaiger Pufflehugs IV nice list, but some of these are a bit...eww.

[cute kitty Meow! Mewo!]

one simple thing. accept that perfection is only an idea to hold as a dream, but never obtain. let go of the need to be a certain thing, I mean always hold onto your dreams, but realize that: 

Growth never ends. anything we are, can become "better", and it is growth itself that makes us worthy, and growth is inevitable, so we are inevitably worthy. 

we can't get to point b without being at point a first, so there is never shame in being where we are, especially if we open ourselves to our growth. 

[iigolden]

3, probably, because that is something everyone needs to do. Everyone has a story, and if you learn about them you find yourself learning what you are as well. It's really important, as well, as I have learned over the course of my life.