What’s special about Fridays? We feature great articles by great guest writers from around the blogospere. Today, we are delighted to welcome back to BRT Jill Chivers who wrote 5 Secrets to Changing  any Habbit back in May. This article has been stumbled on Stumble Upon a massive 1400 times.

Jill is an Australian based author, corporate facilitator and key note speaker. You can check out her site I’m Listening Now where you can subscribe to her excellent ezine.  Judging by the photo that Jill sent in (taken by herself) Jill is a bit of an action junkie and has a great head for heights!

Sadly, Jill is not on Twitter – but if she was, she’d be today’s Friday Follow!

Over to you Jill

Many people are excited about the lives of celebrities and wanna be celebrities.  Reality shows have made it possible to be the voyeur in the lives of ordinary people, who by virtue of the reach and power of television, have become household names.

I have one friend who reserves Tuesday nights as her favourite TV night – she won’t answer the phone or leave the house for any reason (except perhaps if it was on fire).  She watches reality show after reality show.  Yet her own life is nothing exciting.  It’s dull in fact.  And this is not me being judgemental – it’s her own evaluation of her life.  She tells anyone who’ll listen how much miserable she is. She finds her life colourless, monotonous, lifeless.  And why?  Because she’s watching other people live their dreams, and she’s not living her own.

I believe the life you should be most excited about is your own.  If the lives you are watching on the small screen are more interesting than yours, it’s time to do something about it.  Here’s my top tips on how to get excited about your life:

1. Turn off the television.  There’s a reason why advertising on television during 6 – 10pm on weeknights is some of the most expensive advertising around.  If you work during the day, these are the hours when you might usually spend ‘relaxing’ in front of the box. You’re tired, you’ve spent all day working for someone else, now it’s your time, right?  Many people use television as their de-stresser.  And there’s a good reason why they do. Television has been called the ‘opiate of the masses’ because it dulls the mind into almost a hypnotic state.  Research shows that brain activity slows down markedly when you watch TV.

So what can you use prime time for instead?  Devote “prime time” (the hours after work/the evening meal) to your own projects.  It’s also great time for reading (rather than having your reading time be strictly for work or the last few minutes before you drop off to sleep).  It’s also great family time, when you can get to know your children, your partner or your close friends in a new light.  You don’t have to be Keeping Up With anyone on the small screen.  You can be creating the life of your dreams.

1. Do something different and/or that you love. To really get excited about your life, tune in to what turns you on.  What is it you love to do?  This may not be a money making venture, like writing your memoirs or building an online business.  It may be something that lights up your soul and makes you feel good.   If you don’t have a hobby, this is a great time to explore what you’d like to do, what really sets your sails.

Step out of the everyday and break with your usual routine if you have one.  Give your neural pathways a jolt. Try out a book club.  Read something you normally wouldn’t.  Create from scratch a recipe you’ve never tried before that uses ingredients you’ve never cooked with before.   Sign up for a language course or a singing group or a writing circle.  Visit a tourist attraction in your area that you’ve always been meaning to visit but never seem to get to.   Do something that scares you, just a little bit.

And here’s a Be-Do-Have question to get you thinking:  if you were one of the most interesting people you knew, who would you be being, and what would you be doing? Start being that person today.

1. Be like 5 again. Children are great at being spontaneous and joyful.  There’s not many 5 year olds who get out of bed with an attitude of (groan) “another day of being in the sandpit” or “oh no, I’ve got playgroup coming up today!”  Give yourself permission to adopt an attitude of playfulness, silliness even.  And yes, this should be context appropriate!  (singing “Toot Toot Chugga Chugga” may not be appropriate in the morning team meeting).  You can join the singing group but be taking it so seriously that you drain all the fun out of it.  You can be creating that Moroccan Meat Balls recipe from scratch but being so intense and solemn about it that you’re like a contestant on Iron Chef.

Allow yourself to let go, relax and have fun.  You’ve heard these words before – this time, let them be more than words that wash over you, and let them become your reality.  Even if it’s just for one night a week.

The life you should be most excited about is your own.  You can start with these suggestions as a way to reconnect with the excitement you have about your own life; or you can make up your own.  Stop by the comments and let me know the ways in which you get excited about your own life.

About the Author: Jill Chivers writes and works about the power and magic of listening. Visit I’m Listening Now to learn more and sign up for her weekly ezine