How to Live an Extraordinary Life

Wow! Your life sounds so amazing. You are so lucky.”

This is a comment I hear frequently about my life traveling the world. I hate it for two very important reasons.

Firstly, saying I’m lucky shows a total disregard for all the choices I have made in order to make my dreams come true. Secondly, but most importantly, those who believe in this fictitious Lady Luck have no awareness of the possibilities that are open to them.

Luck does not exist and believing in this dis-empowers a person tremendously. What they are saying is “It will never happen to me,” or “I am not good enough,” This idea of others being lucky, means those who believe in it don’t even make the effort to try and live an extraordinary life.

Lucky, you are reading this post today, because I am going to share with you how an ordinary person like me has been able to live an extraordinary life living and traveling around the world. I have been doing it since I graduated from University in 1997. I did not have access to large amounts of money, only large amounts of desire.

 

How to Live an Extraordinary Life

 

 

All I did was a make a few extra choices and took a few extra actions. The difference between ordinary and extraordinary in reality is just that little bit extra.

Here are 5 extra ways you can start to go from ordinary to extraordinary.

 

Say yes to the dream

It’s incredible how most people miss this one simple, initial step. And it’s the reason why they remain on their comfy couches. They’ll sit and imagine what they will do once luck visits with their ideal life, not understanding that if you first say yes, the Universe will start moving things around to help bring the opportunities to take to live your dream life.

Saying yes shows your desire to really have what it is you are dreaming of and lays out your commitment to the attainment of it. It’s amazing what will come your way when you show the Universe you are serious.

 

Understand you deserve it

There is nothing wrong with you and there is no reason why you can’t live your dream life and be extraordinary. There is one simple little statement I say to myself daily. “If someone else can do it, then why not me.” Just saying that extra sentence each day, develops the belief that you can do it and you deserve it.

On your way to living your extraordinary life, you are going to meet with people who will tell you why you can’t do it. My response is always the same “Why not? If someone else is doing it, so can I.”

 

Take the opportunities

Amongst the “You’re so lucky” comments, there are few that come from wise old owls who understand the bigger picture. From their mouths come the words, “I wish I did it when I was young and the opportunities were there.”

Even though I don’t think age should ever be a barrier to living your dreams, the truth is that making your life extraordinary means taking the opportunities that come your way daily. Yes that is right, daily. It is not a lucky lottery that swings by a one in a million chance. When you say yes to living an extraordinary life, doors will swing open like an old saloon door when the posse rides into town. All you have to do is walk right on through them. Just that little bit of an extra step.

 

Make the Sacrifices

Gucci, Prada, Lexus, …… When I hear labels and brand names in conversations with others, I kind of shrink back quietly into the background. I am a label ignorant. All I know about brand names is that they carry with them a high price tag and a serious limitation of your ability to live your true dreams.

Luxury labels don’t create long-lasting memories. They outdate, fall apart, get lost, or stolen. Just keeping these around comes at a high price as well; insurance costs, maintenance, spit and polish, matching shoes and belts. Doing that little bit extra means cutting back on luxuries, basing your life on minimalist needs, and putting all that extra cash into building an extraordinary life.

The sacrifices won’t always be tangible things either. It might mean sacrificing time.
You cannot get without giving up something first. It might mean working extra hours or jobs, spending less time with friends and family, giving up the TV, eating less, or learning more. Whatever the extraordinary life you desire, you have to decide on what your sacrifices need to be in order to obtain it, and then make the sacrifices.

 

Stretch the comfort zones

You don’t have to go from the couch to living in a foreign country in one day. All you need to do is a little bit extra each day. Talk to the checkout chick when you buy your groceries, offer a kind word to the tired waiter serving you your meal, or take a language lesson.

In order for you to live your extraordinary life you have to get uncomfortable. This is the only way we grow and move forward. Get uncomfortable one step at a time, slowly stretching out your comfort zones.

Each small baby step forward helps to prepare you for when your dream eventually arrives. You’ll discover that the dream will arrive quite subtly. Your increased confidence levels will help you to embrace it rather than run away in fear.

 

Live with Passion

This one little step encompasses so much and is the secret ingredient that brings your dream hurtling towards you at lightning speed. Living with passion means throwing your heart and soul into everything you do. It means living in total joy, accepting others as a gift in your life, and living in total gratitude for all that is coming your way.

 

When you live with passion, you say you are excited by life and in love with it. And when you are in love with life, you will attract so many incredible things to continue to be amazed and grateful for. You get what you give. Period. Of all the little extra steps, this is the easiest and the most fun.

So you see, luck really has nothing to do with it. Luck is when preparedness meets opportunity. And those who live extraordinary lives clearly see this distinction. It all starts with just that little bit extra.

 

Bio:
Caz Makepeace has been living an extraordinary life living and traveling the world since 1997. Her husband joined her 8 years ago, and now their 3 year old daughter travels with them too. They believe life is all about the memories, and you can follow their travel stories and inspirations at y travel blog and join them on their fanpage.