I used to cry myself to sleep every night. I walked around the cold city of Chicago feeling lifeless, numb and bored with life. I would obsess over my day, and feel tremendous guilt and anxiety tied to my eating disorders, drug addictions, poor choices in men, and misery about staying in a job I hated. I would do whatever I could to avoid the sinking feeling that I hated my life。

　　以前我每天晚上都哭着睡觉。我在芝加哥这个寒冷的城市里走来走去，感觉自己毫无生气、麻木，并觉得人生无趣。我担心自己的每一天，因为饮食失调、药物上瘾、男友很差、痛苦地做着讨厌做的工作而感到巨大的内疚和焦虑。我会做任何事情来避免自己讨厌生活的那种糟糕感觉。

　　Today my life is much different than the depressed girl, forever exhausted from her tears. Today I am happy, healthy and in love with life and with myself。

　　现在我的生活和那个郁闷女孩的生活有了很大的不同，不再因泪水而疲惫不堪。现在我很开心、很健康、热爱生活、喜欢自己。

　　The changes in my life have been important, but the real change isn't about who I have become. I haven't become anyone I wasn't before. I just made it a daily practice to remove the barriers that were keeping me from expressing my true self。

　　我生活中的改变非常重要，但是真正的改变不是在于我变成了谁。我还是原来的那个我。我只是每天加以练习，除去了那些阻碍我表达真实自我的障碍。

　　Many of us are depressed, or we go through moments of feeling stuck in life. The fastest way to remove depression and fear from our life is to access our true and unique self。

　　我们很多人都很郁闷，或经历过生活中很多束手无策的时刻。把抑郁和恐惧从我们生活中清除出去最快的方法是找到真实而独特的自我。

　　I started to reflect on the key differences between my life today and how it was then. What I've seen is that it comes back to my habits and daily choices。

　　我开始反思现在生活和以前生活的主要区别。我发现区别在于我的习惯和每天的选择。

　　What I learned through those experiences is that life is too short to stay at war with ourselves, and the longer we make excuses and allow ourselves to stay stuck in our bad habits, the shorter our lives will become。

　　通过那些经验，我学到了生命太短了，根本无法一直和自己抗争。我们找借口的时间越长、允许自己停留在坏习惯中的时间越长，我们的生命就会变得越短。

　　If you were to take a mental　field trip and visit your future self, the one who is no longer struggling with the situation that is currently causing you the most stress, what advice would he or she give you?

　　如果你经历一段精神之旅去看看未来的自我，那时的你不再和当前给你造成最大压力的情况做斗争，他或她会给你什么样的建议呢？

　　I asked myself this same question, and in reflection of my own life, I can't help to wonder whether, if I'd asked these six questions several years ago, I would have been happier sooner?

　　我问了问自己同样的问题，对自己的生活进行反思后，我不禁去想，几年前如果我问自己这6个问题，我是不是能更快地开心起来呢？

　　1. Are you giving more faith to your fears than your dreams?

　　你是不是更相信你的恐惧而不是你的梦想？

　　Leaning into love is the fastest way to manifest　your dream life. Believe in yourself and the power of your dreams. Recognize that fear is a manifestation of insecurity and worry. It does not need to control your actions. Instead lean into love。

　　爱是实现梦想生活的最快方式。相信自己以及梦想的能力。要意识到恐惧是不安全感和担忧的体现。不需要控制你的行为。要学会去爱。

　　2. Are you settling?

　　你是不是安定下来了？

　　Look at every area of your life -- your relationships, your career, your financial　situation, your health, your environment and identify any areas where you are settling. Your future self wants you to take action today to disrupt the habit of settling. You deserve better for yourself, and you need to trust the big picture。

　　看一下你生活中的各个方面——你的恋爱关系、你的事业、你的财政状况、健康状况、环境，并找出你安定下来的几个方面。未来的你想让你自己今天就采取行动来打破安定的习惯。你会变得更好，你要相信你的未来会更美好。

　　3. Are you listening to your body?

　　你有没有倾听你的身体？

　　Your body is the greatest tool for assessing your inner happiness and health. If you bulldoze over your feelings, you could miss the opportunity for grace and authentic　happiness. You body will tell you when you are hungry or tired, and when it is time to relax or else get out and move and sweat. Learning to listen to your beautiful body and accept it for its uniqueness will help you feel more peace。

　　你的身体是衡量你内心幸福和健康最主要的工具。如果你抑制自己的感情，你会错过优雅和真正幸福的机会。你的身体会告诉你什么时候饿了或累了，什么时候该放松或出去运动一下。学会倾听你美丽的身体并接受它的独特性，会帮助你感受到更多的平和。

　　4. Are you your own best friend?

　　你是不是自己最好的朋友？

　　Listening to the advice of others and ignoring your own inner guidance can keep you feeling stuck in life. Learn to trust your heart and become your own best friend。

　　倾听他人的建议而忽视自己内心的引导会让你感觉生活不如意。学着信任你的内心，成为自己最好的朋友。

　　5. Are you accepting others, including yourself, for who they are not who you want them to be?

　　你接受他人和你自己真实的一面吗？而不是你想让他们变成的样子？

　　Many of us try to change people, or to change things in the world that don't fit or make sense to us. Instead of spending so much time focusing on what is not working, turn inward and ask how you can improve yourself? Are you being kind and compassionate to your own self? Be gentle with this process; accepting people for who they are will help you attain lasting inner peace。

　　我们很多人都想去改变他人，或改变不适合我们或对我们来说是无意义的事物。与其花费这么多时间去关注不管用的事情，不如转向内心寻求如何能提升自我。你是不是对自己很好？很同情你自己？慢慢地进行这个过程；接受人们真正的自我会帮助你的内心获得持续的平和。

　　6. Are you enjoying the journey and releasing your expectations of the destination?

　　你是不是很享受这个旅程，并释放出你对目的地的期望？

　　The magic is in this moment; let your goals drive you, but do not let them define you. The journey is where the fun is, so give yourself time to be present in this moment because this moment is all we will ever have。

　　神奇之处就在这一刻；让你的目标来驱动你，但是不要让它们去定义你。旅程就是乐趣的所在，给自己时间来享受这一刻，因为只有在这一刻我们才拥有它。

adapted from: http://edu.sina.com.cn/en/2013-11-04/164377752.shtml