At some point, most people realise they’re busy, but that they’re busy with things that aren’t all that important to them. You’ll find your days end up filled with work, messages, errands, and obligations, and because of all that, it can actually be really hard to tell the difference between what’s urgent and what’s genuinely important in life – they can definitely be two different things. With that in mind, here are some helpful tips to ensure you can decide what’s important in life and perhaps change a few things for the better. Keep reading to find out more. 

Start With How You Actually Spend Your Time

One easy way to understand what’s important is to look at how you spend your time right now – just take a look at your calendar, check your screen time, and think about your routines, and you’ll start to get a good idea of what’s what. 

If most of your time goes to work, family, and basic responsibilities, that doesn’t mean those are your only priorities, it just means that’s where you go to first, and that makes a lot of sense because they are important. But if they’re talking up all your time, then there might be a problem because your balance is off, and you won’t be giving yourself any time for things like hobbies, interests, and relaxation, for example. 

What Gives You Energy? 

You’ll usually find that some activities you do leave you feeling completely drained and very tired, whereas others leave you feeling more energised, happy, and focused. When you pay more attention to your reaction to things, you’ll get a much better idea of what’s actually important in your life – and that could be entirely different to someone else, so always think about how you feel, not how you think you should feel because someone else said so. 

For example, you might notice you feel better after a walk, after cooking, after talking to friends, or after a short break to play a fun game like solitaire – these won’t necessarily be big things or what someone might think of as exciting, but if they make you feel good, they’re important, and you need to include them in your life more often. 

Separate Pressure From Preference 

A lot of what we think is actually important comes from pressure, and that pressure might come from social media, family expectations, cultural norms, workplace values, and a whole lot more besides. 

You’ll often see things like career success, productivity, constant self-improvement, and financial milestones as being hailed as the main markers of a good life, and they can definitely be important to some people, but they won’t be important to everyone. That’s why it’s good to ask yourself whether something is important because you care about it or because you just feel like you’re meant to – work that out, and you can direct your life (and your happiness) in the right direction for you, whatever that might be. 

Look At What You Worry About Losing 

Another way to understand your priorities is to imagine what you’d miss the most if it disappeared – it could be time with your family, your health, your independence, your hobbies, or even your daily routines if they make you feel positive and comfortable, for example. 

Sometimes, you only realise how much you value something if it’s threatened in some way, and it makes sense to work out what those things are before it comes to that, so you can always keep them safe and part of your life, no matter what else is happening around you. 

Notice What You Come Back To

It’s funny, but even with endless options, people tend to keep coming back to the same things, the same people, the same places, and the same habits. So what do you keep coming back to, because what it is, it actually means something – it’s actually important. 

After all, if you keep going back to something or someone even when no one’s telling you to, it means you feel comfortable, interested, and there’s some kind of attachment, so whether it’s the habit of chatting with a friend once a week, favourite TV programme, an outside space you love to visit, game night with your family, collecting something interesting (to you, even if it’s not all that interesting to anyone else), or anything else, it’s important. 

After all, you’re not going to repeatedly choose something for no reason, are you? 

Understand Importance Changes Over Time 

What matters in your twenties might not matter in your forties, and what matters in your forties might not matter in your seventies… The point is, priorities naturally change as life changes, along with different responsibilities, health, and experiences. 

For example, some people think adventure is important when they’re younger, then they’ll change and think stability is important when they’re older, and others decide that creativity, relationships, or just making life a lot simpler is what’s really important after a different outlook at first. Importance is actually quite fluid, and it’s normal to change your mind about things, especially as you experience more and more of life and what it can teach you. 

Accept That Small Things Matter Too

It’s easy to fall into the trap of assuming that important things have to be big things, but the truth is that small things matter too – sometimes more than the big things, which can end up being quite rare. 

In the end, sometimes what matter most is whatever helps you feel good while you’re making your way through the day – and that’s good (and it’s important). 

Final Thoughts 

Deciding what’s important in life isn’t as hard as it might sound at first – but you do need to pay attention. Once you do that, you’ll soon realise what it is that always rises to the top of the list when you’ve got a choice about what to do, and knowing what’s important means you can plan your life around it, ensuring that you’ve got as much positivity as possible when you need it.