We make things too hard. We make things too stressful. We make things too confusing.

The main reason for these issues is we want control. We want the things in our life to turn out the way we want. We want perfection and we want a fairytale (whether we know it or not).

Take some things we complain about. “I have a bad teacher.” Of course you do. You have had many teachers. A few were probably good even great. Most were probably average. And some are going to be bad.

I know we don’t think we want life to be perfect. But when we complain of the little things that go wrong, when we strive for perfection that doesn’t exist, we are saying life should be perfect, and that’s not the case.

Things will always be different than what we ideally want. That’s life.

You can fight these little things. You can get stressed by them.

Or you can forget them. You can let life flow.

Let’s use an example. As you are walking to get to your desk, you hear another student talk to her friend about your shoes. She says that they are ugly. You could stress. You could boil in anger at your desk, wondering how to get back at her. You can think about how maybe your shoes aren’t so nice after all.

Or you can let it slide. She’s being a jerk. Don’t worry about it. Move on.

Note my own personal example: I was placed in a class that I absolutely hated. The teacher sucked, and I didn’t like any of the students. I choose to pout for many months of the year.

But eventually, I dropped my bad attitude. The teacher was actually pretty good. I enjoyed talking with fellow students. The class turned out to be one of my favorites.

If I had just flowed, instead of taking a negative attitude, I wouldn’t have wasted all that time. I wouldn’t have stressed and complained.

How to Make Life Effortless

Flowing isn’t easy at first. We are too used to going against the current. But once it becomes a habit, it becomes effortless.

The key is to consciously tell yourself to forget about controlling every little thing.

Look at things differently. When it comes to insignificant things, accept them the way they are. Often, changing things just for your sake won’t help anyone.

Learn to be less annoyed. Understand that everything doesn’t go right, so prepare yourself for things that go wrong. You aren’t perfect, so other human beings aren’t either.

Letting the current take you is effortless. Swimming against the current is hard. There are times when swimming against the current is necessary and admirable. But much of the time it’s easier and better to go with the flow.