A Short Guide to Creating a Self-Sustaining Life
“To thine own self, be true” goes the saying. And as we all struggle to find ways to function in this stressful world, we start a fashion our own way of coping. But when we feel external pressures upon our quality of life, what can we do to look after ourselves while still living the life that we want? Self-sufficiency is one of those terms that is bandied around a lot these days and it can mean a wide variety of different things. But let’s dive into this a little bit more. What can you do to make a self-sustaining life using this term in as many different contexts as possible?
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
1 – Self-Sustaining Resources
Self-sustainable living is all about the resources you use. Being self-sufficient is, for many people, about living off the land. Eating in season is a very common approach and is, in one simple way, about going back to a more basic way of living. It could be growing your own food but it could also be about using your abilities to create your own crops or food and herbs. But in order to do this, it might require a significant investment upfront. The question is to ask yourself what you need to grow to guarantee a self-sustaining lifestyle.
Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash
You may not be someone who likes a lot of fruit and vegetables on your plate, in which case, it might be better for you to breed chickens that lay eggs. But you can also think about other approaches that may not seem so obvious. For example, purchasing hemp flowers so you have a steady source of CBD can be a great way to help any ailing health problems. CBD oil appears to be a very useful substance for a wide variety of health issues. And you can take advantage of this.
Overall, using self-sustainable resources can be an investment upfront, but whether you are breeding chickens, growing plants, or just getting started on a vegetable patch, it has so many significant benefits for anybody’s lifestyle.
Photo by Danielle MacInnes on Unsplash
2 – Self-Sustaining in a Physical Sense
Physical strength is integral to our health and happiness. But as time has gone on it seems that many people have become reliant on the gym as the only means of physical activity. The great thing about physical activity is that we don’t need a gym. When we look back to our ancestors who were hunter-gatherers, they didn’t need to lift a barbell over their heads. It’s just as beneficial, if not more beneficial, to utilise your body weight. So many people have had to make do with what they’ve got around them in light of the pandemic, but the great thing about using your own body weight is that you are able to grow stronger more naturally.
Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash
The big problem many people have when they lift weights is that they will try to contort themselves to get more reps, which people think is the best way to grow muscle. In fact, the best marker for strength is about fatiguing the muscle. Fatiguing the muscle with the perfect form will not just mean you grow strength naturally but you will also avoid injury.
When we talk about being self-sustaining in a physical sense it’s all about using our body weight. There are things that we can do to grow strength naturally with a bit more assistance such as pull-up bars and resistance bands. But there is no one thing better than the other. Growing strength naturally means your body pulling or pushing against a force and adapting by growing more muscle and strength. Our body cannot tell the difference between a dead weight, body weight, or any other item.
Photo by kylie De Guia on Unsplash
3 – Self-Sustaining as a Mindset
Mental strength is something that we either believe we have or we don’t. But whether your work life is adding to your stress or there are external forces at play, it’s important to learn the arts of strengthening ourselves. Self-sustainability is a mindset that isn’t about protecting ourselves but learning and developing. People believe that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. But our brains are so adept due to something called neuroplasticity, that we can develop. It’s all about the mindset we practice.
Self-sustainability is about realising that we can learn new tricks. Many people do not believe that things can change. But we can use cbt as a fantastic example of how to change our mindset.
Photo by Diana Schröder-Bode on Unsplash
In life, we, unfortunately, conform to perceptions about ourselves which makes it difficult to escape our old lives when we’re trying to be a new person. This is why sometimes we need to start again and either make new friends or throw ourselves out of our comfort zone. But mental strength is something that can yield so much in terms of our quality of life but, as is the cliche, we are the ones holding ourselves back.
Self-sustainability is a mindset but it’s about knowing and trusting you have the abilities to develop yourself. And this is something that we are all capable of. The mind, much like the body, is a muscle and it can be stretched and contorted to help itself grow.
Photo by Tim Goedhart on Unsplash
Building a Self-Sustaining Life
Using these three components as a foundation for our lives we can achieve almost anything we want. To thine own self, you need to be true. But most of us seldom are honest with ourselves. If we want to build a life where we can be healthy, happy, and proud of who we are, there is a lot to be said for relying on ourselves. Of course, that’s not to say you should avoid ever asking for help – asking for help is also a sign of strength. But when we live in a world of sheer external stress we need to remember the importance of developing resilience.
Resilience in a natural sense by growing our own produce, resilience in a physical sense where we are strengthening our body, but also resilience in terms of strengthening our mindset. Get these three pillars correct, the sky’s the limit, but you are armed with the keys to a self-sustaining life.
PIN this Short Guide to Creating a Self-Sustaining Life
*****
Follow The Life of Stuff on Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram