Stop Living Like a Non-Player Character (NPC): Embrace a Fulfilling Life

Do you consume too much content on Social Media platforms? Do you always love to gossip about your favourite influencer/celebrity/politician?

Do you always watch others doing well in their lives like a spectator while you are not doing anything for your goals? If your answer to all these questions is ‘Yes’, you are very likely living a ‘Non-Player Character’ life. But don’t worry since you are here, we will figure out a way to get you out of that mindset and help you be an achiever and overall a better person.

What is a ‘Non-Player Character’?

A ‘Non-Player Character’ is someone who doesn’t have a mission of his own, has no objectives in his life, just spectates others instead of focusing on his own life to do something worthwhile. An NPC is more interested in others’ lives than his own and wastes days, weeks, months doing nothing.

The Problem:

Let me make it very clear that all of us have different ways of entertaining ourselves, some like playing video games, some like watching sports, some like watching movies etc.

But it is one thing to consider yourself to feel relaxed, happy and satisfied with your life the way you want it and a completely different thing to bombard your brain with so much content and entertainment that you cannot think of anything else.

When you spend most of your time watching movies, web-series, playing games or doing anything else that is numbing your mind, you condition your brain into thinking about the same things which you watched throughout the day.

Have you noticed that when you watch any web series or play games for the whole day, repeatedly for some days, you feel like you have nothing to do and you cannot figure out what your goals are? This happens because of the conditioning of your brain.

Now, because of this conditioning, you start feeling your life has no meaning and that you are not living the way others are living.

You start finding others’ lives more interesting than yours. But since you have bombarded your brain so much and you still prefer consuming content and being an NPC numbing your mind, you don’t get any ideas about what you are supposed to do.

This results in escapism i.e., running away from your current realities using the means of distracting yourself with whatever you get immediately. It can be gaming, movies, social media, something harmful like alcohol, smoking and other illegal substances, or even sleeping more than you need to.

NPCs have this trait of escapism which makes their lives worse. They don’t want to face the reality, the truth and hence keep on numbing their minds with unnecessary information. The worst part of being in this situation is that it creates ‘Downward Spiral’ in your life, this means that not only you are not gaining anything out of it, you are actually destroying your life by wasting your time, money and energy in an endless cycle.

The Solution:

Choose a Fulfilling Life over an NPC life. How do you do that? You start living a goal-oriented life, have a purpose to dedicate your life to, and work each and every day towards reaching that goal.

And not just goals, start doing well in other aspects of your life as well. Build good relations with your loved ones, with your friends and colleagues. Focus on increasing your intellectual capability, work on your knowledge and skills, build your network and aim for a better life for not only yourself but for others as well.

Let me tell you, this path is not easy. You will face difficulties on this path, hardships that require you to be better than before to face them. All you need to do is to be a little bit better today than you were yesterday.

Constant upgradation is the way to freedom, as they say, “a little progress each day adds up to big results”. Consistency is something which will get you so far you won’t realize how far you have come.

Best way to bring change in your life, if you are just starting, is to start exercising. It can be going to the gym, running, cycling, swimming, martial arts or any sports activity to make your mind and body stronger.

When you do any form of workout, your outlook changes, your perception changes and so does your mindset. And another great advantage is that it creates a foundation for the disciplines lifestyle. You start focusing on your own development, health, diet, progress rather than wasting time, money and energy on watching your favourite media personality.

Start reading books that will help you. Don’t listen to naysayers, just start reading what you find interesting. Soon you will develop such a great habit of reading that you won’t go to bed without reading a book.

Stop using social media. It is not doing any good to you. You might think you are getting all the news, latest updates from around the world, but ask yourself, “Is it really useful?”, “Will that news regarding a politician really matter to me at the moment?”, “Do I really need to know what that actor does after the shoot is over?”, “Is it really helping me in achieving what I want to achieve?”.

When you get the answers from your conscience, you will stop using social media apps. There is another way that is actual good for disciplined individuals, it involves staying away from social media and not bothering about anything on those apps. Just use it at a fixed timing(only if time allows), then go back to work. This method is good for those who have good control over their choices and are living an organized life.

Set some goals. Note down things that fascinate you the most, things which make you feel alive and things that you can do even without expecting anything in return. You may find multiple things you are interested in, so figure-out if you can combine all those interests to make something new, something great that can solve problems, make lives easier or just great enough to be appreciated by everyone. Do that. This is how you find what your purpose is.

Make a Schedule. A schedule that you will follow everyday. Write your 5-6 daily goals and make sure you complete them before going to sleep at night. You may even include entertainment in your schedule if time permits.

Follow what I told you and see what you’ll become in the next 6 months. Focus on building yourself up in each and every aspect of your life. Eat clean and healthy, workout regularly, take enough sleep to rest and recover, increase your knowledge, skills and stop doing what makes you feel bad. This is it. Your life will take a paradigm shift if you do only these things daily.

Let me know if this article helped you in any way or if there are certain things which can be added. Also, after reading this article, if you follow this self improvement path, do let me know about your journey and what you became in the 6 months.

Thank you for reading. Take care.