Let me ask this of you: at the end of the day, when all activities and events are over, and when you go to bed at the end of the night, do you feel satisfied with how your day went? Did you achieve enough for the day? Could you possibly have done more? No, you did just the right amount to feel content.

People on a day-to-day basis live their lives to a certain degree of “I could have done more, except I think I did enough.” Whether you are an adult or teenager, this is true, especially since most people talk about their big dreams. Yet at the end of every day, we are just living passable requirements without any necessary changes in our lives.

I asked my dad what he thought of the matter and he said: “I didn’t try all that much and could be rich right now if I actually tried.” He went on to tell how most of his life, he had been doing the bare minimum and just did what he needed to get by without problems. Concluding the conversation, he said that the majority do the same thing but struggle a lot more than he did because they don’t have as good of a skill set.

This indicates that change in a person or their surroundings will only occur if that person takes action on the problem of their situation. The reason, and noticeably so, that people are stuck where they are is because they are striving for only a passable life. This could relate to the easy or instant access to most things and could also be substantially due to the knowledge and understanding we as humans have.

Some people like the life they have and love what they do. A majority of the populace, however, does not enjoy the place they are employed at. Even the part-timers who try to go from job to job scraping what they can to get by, eventually blow their money on a bunch of useless things. Having modern conveniences presents itself as the “good life” and that nothing can get better, except it’s the exact opposite. People need to drop these tendencies or habits that keep them stuck in this loop.

Another person who was interviewed about how people are living to get by was a Pentucket senior who told me that they in fact did not like their job, similar to most. I asked where they spent the money they received from work and they stated, “I spent a bunch on concerts and going out to eat.” The senior told me that they were living just fine and did not have any difficult situations that really required them to change.

Instead of trying to live in the passable zone, you need to trigger a change in your life, and it’s important that people reflect on their priorities and make sensible choices that align with their values and goals. When people decide to transform and improve themselves, everything will start to change because then they will be looking for people who support their growth rather than those who promote negative habits. Surrounding yourself with these certain individuals could help impact your personal development by keeping you away from the negative things.

It is essential, though, to create a change to further propel yourself in the right direction if you don’t desire just a passable life. This shift in mindset can lead to long-lasting changes that guide you toward a more successful life. To improve from the bare minimum and the paycheck-to-paycheck life, create change big enough to better yourself and your surroundings.