Three Important Things You Better Sacrifice for in Life

A life in which you have to sacrifice for nothing eventually leaves you empty.

Nevertheless, the pitier part is that although most of us are too hesitant to make a single sacrifice, we’re all hoping for some form of completion. We all dream of an amazing life, having the best memories, the wealth, the traveling.

But life doesn’t work that way.

You need to give first in order to receive something back. This applies to anything. From the simplest things such as smiling first to a person so they smile you back, to the most abstract ones such as dedicating your energy to nurturing your children in order to finally look at and admire them some years later.

It’s always this perpetual cycle of giving and receiving. The yin and yang. And usually, it comes through sacrifice.

Sacrifice is the most realistic word. It completely responds to the world around us; The same way nature has to sacrifice its small organisms to maintain the balance in ecosystems, we have to sacrifice our short-terms urges for accomplishing our long-term goals.

Sacrifice is the medium for having everything in life:

You achieve success with hard work, by putting in the time and energy, meaning making a sacrifice of your leisure.
You experience pure love and affection by committing to a person, meaning sacrificing your freedom and uncontrolled urge for more partners.

However, some of us still have resentment toward that word. We don’t like it. We’re obsessively trying to avoid sacrifices. We don’t want to make any trade-off.

But this is also the exact reason that we are miserable. There’s neither reward nor satisfaction when you take something by giving nothing. After all, you appreciate more the things you’ve sweated a little bit for achieving them.

And it’s also true that, to some extent, you can get through life without any sacrifice. There’s an abundance, right? Of people to meet, of places to go, of money to make…so yes, you might not be devasted by the loss of a friend because you didn’t put any time into seeing them as you can replace them anytime.

But, I’m sure you’ll probably get extremely sad if you lose some other things, way more significant. Things that in fact, are so special, that your whole life will feel unfulfilled if you don’t sacrifice for them.

So what are those things I’m obsessively referring to?

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1. Your Deepest Truth

“Never let someone’s opinion become your reality. Never sacrifice who you are because someone else has a problem with it. Love who you are inside and out.”— Les Brown

Our immost calling in life is to live by our truth and remain on our purpose. But what does your “truth ”implies anyway? Your truth is your deepest beliefs, your perspectives, your biggest dreams. All the things that make you who you are.

However, you can’t serve your truth without any sacrifice. You need to express it and protect it even if this might cost your life. Remember how many people died in history for protecting their innate truth with the vision to pass it to the next generations.

Their life, therefore immediately, took a powerful meaning, a meaning that maybe the majority of people will never understand. Because living and sacrificing for your truth, like the other valuable things in life are self-experienced.

You can realize them only by experiencing them. And to be honest, that demands a huge sacrifice. The reward though is inconceivable. So, don’t hesitate to give everything you have for your deepest dream, your greatest desire, and your profound purpose.

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2)Something Bigger Than Yourself

Whoever god, higher form, created us, it designed us very cleverly. We are wired to become happy when we make others happy. And that isn’t just common sense but also scientific evidence.

When we do kind actions or offer our help to someone, our brain excretes dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin —the three hormones responsible for our happiness.

Our lives become ten times brighter when we help our neighbors and contribute to society. So, happiness, even in terms of biology, is a path that comes through sacrifice for others. When your life purpose is orientated to others rather than just to yourself, you are more likely to be happy.

Really, what would you do if you were alone on the earth? So offer generously your help to everyone that needs you, even if this means to really commit and devote yourself to social service. Remember it’s worth the sacrifice.

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3)Powerful Emotions: Love and Fulfillment

Life is a constant game of distraction. You want to achieve something but it’s mathematically inevitable not to face challenges that will get you out of track. And not only do we confront challenges, but also dilemmas.

I don’t mean philosophical dilemmas, like “ to be or not to be?” but daily ones, such as “should I choose to live in this country or move to another or should I commit to this person or look for something else?” Because both have the same result, they make us deviate from our path.

And as we said, we are greedy. We fall into these traps, believing that we can have everything without making any sacrifice. And, it’s true, in terms of material possessions, we may achieve this. We can make more money, buy more cars and clothes. We can even get more partners, friends, and travel to dozens maybe hundreds of places.

This possibility though is so deluding to a point that we might believe we discovered a life cheat code.

But life rules are strict, and you can’t have everything at the same time. Sun exists in the day, not in the nights. In the night there’s the moon. You have to choose. You can’t have the sun at night. Ultimately, you have to make a sacrifice. You need to select something and reject another.

So you might be wondering what are the things you have to sacrifice for? Feelings, of course, such as love and fulfillment! Emotions are the most important part of our nature and to experience some of them, comes with a cost. So, allow me to tell:

You can’t experience true intimacy if you don’t commit to a single person and sacrifice your unbridled urge for constant sex.
You can’t become excellent in ten things in life. You have to choose what you’ll focus on.
You can’t be fulfilled unless you control your mania for more, meaning becoming grateful for what you have.
You can’t become happy if you don’t sacrifice for the things that truly make you happy while rejecting everything else.

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Final Thoughts

As we grow up we come closer and closer to realizations, rules that delineate life and the world. Sacrifice is one of the most significant. You have to give in order to take.

And despite how uncomfortable this makes us feel, it’s liberating. Because ultimately it calms us, it leads us to acceptance. Everything is a choice.

So, don’t be scared to sacrifice sometimes for things, especially if those are an integral part of who you are and for your happiness.

“A Mother’s love is something that no one can explain, It is made of deep devotion and of sacrifice and pain, It is endless and unselfish and enduring come what may. For nothing can destroy it or take that love away.” — Helen Steiner Rice

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This post was previously published on medium.com.

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