Worried about what you will do during your gap year? There are plenty of ways you can spend it. However, not everything you do during your sabbatical will be helpful to you in the long run.
You can choose to be productive by devoting your time to some gap year jobs or you can do completely nothing and just hang out. But would you rather waste precious time dilly-dallying around? Wouldn’t you want to take this time in your life to build stronger foundations for your future?
Instead of chilling and Netflixing at home, focus your attention and channel your energy to beef up these four areas in your life.
Leadership
Leadership positions may not be for everyone but that doesn’t mean you’re not a leader. When we say leadership, we’re mostly talking about how a person uses his or her influence.
Each person has a certain sphere of influence where his words and actions have weight and value to those inside that sphere. It is said that even the most timid person can influence about 10,000 people in his or her life. The people around you look at you closely and observe what you’re doing.
Your family, friends, acquaintances, strangers. These are people you come into contact with daily whose lives are affected by your’s, directly or indirectly. For this reason, you need to be more conscious about how you live your life because your behavior will have a greater impact in others’ lives, whether positively or negatively.
Integrity
As far as behavior is concerned, strive to live a life of integrity. Integrity has to do with how consistent you are with your behavior. You may behave one way in public but behind closed doors, are you still the same person?
If you publicly profess that you are against pornography but in the confines of your bedroom you engage in these activities, where is the integrity in that? Or let’s say you openly oppose corruption of all sorts but you’re open to paying a traffic enforcer a few dollars just to get off a parking ticket, what does that make you?
Integrity will help build your credibility. It shows what you value the most in life.
Faith
The values we hold on to are formed by our beliefs. Faith is a fundamental aspect of that belief system whether you’re a theist or not.
What we believe serves as our moral compass. It determines how we do things in keeping with a moral conscience. Humans are moral beings. We have a greater sense of right and wrong, with some wiggle room for some minor differences.
Regardless of these differences, almost all belief systems are pointing in the same direction of doing what is universally and essentially good to our fellowmen. Deepen your faith and keep yourself aligned morally for it will manifest in your behavior.
Excellence
Contrary to popular belief, excellence doesn’t necessarily mean you have to be the best. Realistically, some people somewhere will always be better than you at something. It is pointless to compete with another person — not to mention egotistical — just to prove that you’re top-notch.
Excellence simply means doing your very best in all you do. It means giving everything you’re involved in your 100% best. Whether it’s schoolwork, your job, handling relationships, managing your time, whatever it is you invest your energy in, do it exceedingly well.
Whatever’s worth doing is worth doing well. Build that habit and embrace it fully.
Getting a good headstart in life means you have to be intentional about everything you do. This will help lay down a solid foundation to build your life on.
