If you want to be your own person then you will need to learn how to follow your heart. We all have those tugs and feelings that pull at our hearts, telling us where we want to go. Having the strength to follow them is different case altogether. In order to follow your heart you have to learn how to let go of certain things, and start acting upon your instincts and your desires.

So how do you start following your heart? First you have to learn how to trust yourself, this means learning to accept you for who you are. Take a look at your life and see what circumstances have led you to where you are today. Is this the path that you want to be on? If not it is time to change course, and only you can give yourself permission to do this.

It will not always be easy to follow your heart. You may end up upsetting or disappointing your family. May be you really don’t want the career your parents had hoped for. Or you heart’s desires may lead you to moving away from your family and friends. These decisions may not always be easy and it will take a good amount of soul searching in order to make them. This is when you know whether or not you are being true to yourself or not.

Life is not perfect for anyone, even if you are following your dreams. Life gets in the way and circumstances arise that are out of your control. You have to learn how to deal with them one by one. While still staying on course.

Following your heart doesn’t mean that you have to live the life of a missionary or live in a remote cabin. It means just allowing yourself to be that person that deep down inside you know you are. This means not being worried about what others think. It means airing your views openly without hiding. Plus it means being happy and content with the person that you have evolved into.

Being your own person is also never complete. It can be viewed as the journey of life. As you go through life your focus may shift and you change course. The life you led in your twenties and thirties may not be the one you want as you enter your fifties.

Are you currently following your heart? If not what’s holding you back?

#James Donaldson notes:Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space.  #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticleFind out more about the work I do on my 501c3 non-profit foundationwebsite www.yourgiftoflife.org Order your copy of James Donaldson's latest book,#CelebratingYourGiftofLife: From The Verge of Suicide to a Life of Purpose and Joy

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