Being proactive rather than reactive is something I think about all the time and has become a ‘catch cry’ in my every day work as a compliance consultant. My job often involves sorting out problems that could have been avoided if people thought ahead and didn’t just live for the moment!

But it is not just in business that this happens. It is my view that we, as human beings, are basically reactive. We don’t really want to think ahead, rather, we just want to enjoy ourselves now and not worry about the consequences. We are told to do this by the advertising companies all the time – drink up and enjoy yourself, indulge a little – you deserve it, and so on. And then there are the entire industries that are based on the ‘live it up now, pay later movement’. For example, the weight loss industry helps people to lose the weight that could have been avoided if they had taken more care with diet and exercise in the first place. And, don’t get me started about the insurance companies. Probably one of the most popular and painless risk mitigation strategies in life is to pay for insurance – just in case. Sadly, an insurance premium does not stop you from having problems in life!

Health is another interesting one. One of the biggest problems for the future in Australia is the ageing population and the increasing cost of health care. Something needs to be done and it comes down to the individual, not just the government or lobby groups. We are all responsible for our own lives and the way we live them. If we want to be healthy in old age then we need think about our lifestyle all throughout our lives and become proactive! Preventative healthcare makes a lot of sense to me.

But it hasn’t always been that way.

My story….

About 10 years ago I fell over and broke my ankle.  I was also overweight which should have told me that recovery would be difficult by my expectation was that I my ankle would heal quickly and that all would be OK. In reality my recovery was long and painful and could have been deadly. I ended up with blood clots in my leg and lungs which meant I had to be treated for 6 months with blood thinners. Not a lot of fun there! My body had also twisted in my fall and everything was out of alignment. Oh, and I had a bad knee too.

It took me over 12 months before I did anything positive to recover. I had allowed myself to become so unfit that I was a mess. The doctor just told me to take pain killers – he couldn’t do anything for me at all! My physio told me to start swimming but initially I responded negatively – swimming was too hard and would take up time etc. Then I went to a chiropractor who told me that I needed to lose weight and develop core strength.

Eventually I got the message and started swimming and yoga and lost weight. Another 12 months on and my ankle was better and other troubles gone. Another few years on and I had a partial knee replacement that would allow me to keep being active so that I could avoid or minimise more health problems. What would have happened if I had not done all these things? I would be in constant pain, prone to more clots, I would be lazy, over weight and generally miserable!

Now, you might be thinking that my response was actually reactive, not proactive and you would be right!! However, once my ‘personal house was in order’ and I was feeling healthy again I decided that from then on I was going down the preventative and proactive route in life.

So I changed my approach to become proactive about my health. Now, when I develop an ache I deal with it quickly by physio and chiro. I swim 4 days a week, I do yoga and walk everyday to be active, keep moving and deal with issues before they become full on health problems. Of course I also use Essential Oils to help stay healthy and have removed many nasty chemicals from my life by making my own cleaning and personal products.

Have you been telling yourself that you will get fit one day or perhaps you are just waiting for the right moment to get your finances in order? Do you want to stop eating rubbish but don’t know how? What are you really waiting for? Do something now! There is help out there and you can find it!!

Here are some steps to take to become more proactive in life:

Step 1.Develop a ‘can do’ attitude and set some goals to change one aspect of your life, i.e. start off with a small change first and work towards achieving that change.

Step 2.Tell someone you trust that you want to make a change in your life and ask them to help you by holding you accountable

Step 3. Set a goal for change and develop an action plan to get you started, make time in your diary, tell your friend and then go for it!!!

Step  4. Repeat i.e once you know that you can change one aspect of your life, try this approach again and make some more positive changes!

We wish you well with this and hope you become proactive in your outlook on life!  We hope you will join us at Helpful by Nature by subscribing to our email list. We would love to hear from you, take your questions and provide answers if we are able.

Until next time,

 

 

Gillian (and Andrew)