This past weekend I was reminded of the basics of living  and as usual, it brought me up short to stop, notice, take stock and decide what to do differently.

It was like a refrain from the past. One of my managers back in South Africa always used to say to me: ‘Back to basics, Avis, back to basics.  Get the basics right and the rest will follow.’ Whilst that was in relation to computer systems, I figure the same concept can be applied to that ‘system’ we call our life.

Back to the basics then, with apologies to those who have it all sorted.

Health:  Eat good quality food, drink more water, exercise more, get rest.
Food affects your sense of wellbeing and energy levels, so make sure it is good quality. The best food is food in its natural state, unrefined and unprocessed except for healthy home cooking.

Finances: Pay yourself first. 10% of your income, whether it is £10, £1,000,  £10 ,000.
If 10% is too much to start with, make it 5%. Get into the habit, automate it and don’t touch it.
Your goal is to accumulate a rainy day fund, 3 to 6 times your income and have it in a savings account that you don’t touch except if you absolutely HAVE to for rainy day events.

Family/Friends: Who do you spend time with? Do they drain your energy or do they energise you? Are you connecting with the people who are important to yo? The longer we leave it to connect, the harder it becomes. ‘Go often to the house of thy friend, for weeds choke the unused path’, Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Mind/Learning: What are you feeding your mind with? What are you reading and listening to?
A constant diet of soap operas, sensational news stories and the next scare is a recipe for fear, anxiety and depression. Marianne Williamson says all of the great spiritual and religious traditions recommend quiet time before you start your day.  And long ago Meister Eckhart said ‘If the only prayer you say in your entire life is thank you, that will be enough.’

Makes you think, doesn’t it? Gonna do something different?