How to Live with Meaning, Purpose, and Presence
Welcome back to the Life Balance Advantage — a space to awaken, reflect, and realign with the life you were meant to live.
In today’s podcast and reflection, we explore a powerful theme:
Spiritual Alignment — living in a way that honors your values, purpose, and the sacred present moment.
Hi, I’m Mark Armiento. Over the past 35 years of clinical work, I’ve seen it time and again: people chasing happiness through money, status, or distractions — only to feel empty and lost.
But when you begin to live with purpose, when you connect to something greater than yourself — everything changes.
Let’s explore how to awaken your spiritual energy by avoiding four common traps… and embracing the present moment with grace.
🧭 The Four Spiritual Life Balance Questions
Before we dive in, ask yourself these four simple questions (answer true or false):
- Do I recognize that my spiritual energy is connected to my deepest values and a purpose beyond myself?
- Do I consistently live in the here and now — the present moment?
- Do I occasionally experience flashes of insight or blissful connection to something greater than myself?
- Do I realize I am more than my thoughts and physical being?
If you answered “false” to two or more, your spiritual domain may need attention.
Let’s begin the journey inward.
🚫 Four Things to Avoid for Spiritual Alignment
1. Avoid Living in Past Regrets
Many people spend their days rehearsing past pain — reliving old mistakes, toxic relationships, or missed opportunities. But life isn’t meant to be lived in reverse.
“Don’t build your home in memory. Learn. Let go. Move forward.”
True spiritual alignment begins when we stop rehearsing the past and start receiving the present.
2. Avoid Negative Future-Tripping
Future-tripping is when you spiral into anxiety about things that haven’t happened yet:
- “Will I meet the right partner?”
- “Will I fail this exam?”
- “Will I be alone forever?”
These are stories — not truths.
“Worry is like a rocking chair — it gives you something to do, but gets you nowhere.”
Bring your attention back to now. Because this moment is all you ever truly have.
3. Avoid Falling into Negative Rabbit Holes
We all have emotional patterns — negative rabbit holes — that we fall into again and again.
- A toxic relationship cycle
- A recurring fear
- A dark self-narrative we can’t seem to escape
There’s a poem by Portia Nelson that captures this beautifully:
“I walk down the street. There’s a deep hole in the sidewalk. I fall in…”
Each verse shows progress — from denial to awareness to finally walking a different path.
This is how spiritual growth works: not with perfection, but with increasing awareness of the patterns that trap us… and the power to choose again.
4. Avoid a Life Without Meaning
Of all the spiritual pitfalls, meaninglessness is the most dangerous.
Without purpose, we drift. We consume. We numb.
But when you find something greater than yourself — when you connect to your core values, your spiritual path, your personal mission — life becomes luminous.
“Happiness doesn’t come from success.
Success comes from living in alignment with your purpose.”
Even science backs this up. Deepak Chopra found that 42% of the wealthiest people were less happy than the average person. Only 6% of lottery winners report greater happiness.
Money isn’t the key. Meaning is.
🙏 Mindfulness Practice: 21 Days of Gratitude
Ready to rewire your brain for spiritual awareness?
Try this powerful 21-day practice:
- Every day, write 3 things you’re grateful for in a journal.
- Be specific. One day it might be “the sun on my face” or “a kind conversation.”
- Do this for three weeks straight — no skipping.
Research shows that sustained gratitude literally reprograms the brain to notice goodness more easily. It opens the heart. It aligns you with peace.
🌈 What If You Lived in Alignment?
What if:
- You stopped reliving your past regrets?
- You released your anxiety about the future?
- You saw your rabbit holes… and walked around them?
- You found your purpose — and lived it, daily?
What if… your what-ifs became your reality?
That’s the Life Balance Advantage. And it starts with you.
Until next time,
Know you are blessed — and be well.
