Monday, April 15, 2013

So many sales people and entrepreneurs feel stuck.  They are stuck in a life they just done love.  If you don't wake up each day enthusiastic, grateful, and excited for another opportunity to enjoy your life, then there is a possibility you are stuck in a life that isn't for you. Too many people just settle for the life they have without taking the bull by the horns to create the life they really want. Why is that? Maybe they don't know that they can change things or maybe they believe that the life they want is out of their reach. I'm here to tell you that the life you want, the one you always dreamed of, is yours for the taking. It will take guts, courage, fortitude, and action, but you can do it. Here are five simple steps for creating the life you want.

1. Know You Can: The very first step to creating the life you want is that you must believe in your heart that you can. This is the most essential step to creating the life you want. If, deep down inside, you feel you are stuck, you will be. If you do feel you are stuck, the best thing you can do is to read stories about others who made 360 degree life changes. There are thousands of books about such people. As well, a simple Google search will return hundreds of thousands of success stories of everyday, ordinary people who made significant changes to create the life they always dreamed of. The truth is, nobody is really ordinary. We were all built with a little amazingness within us…that gumption that gives us super-human strength just when we need it. You will need to access that strength and resourcefulness to change your life. Even if you never knew you had it, it is in you, because it is in everyone.

2. Know Your WHY: Why do you want a new life? Maybe it's as simple as wanting happiness or perhaps you need a new life for your health. Maybe you need a better life so you can be a better person for your kids. Everyone has a WHY. It's absolutely essential to know what yours is because changing your life takes work, and a lot of it. It is not always going to be easy. What makes big changes tolerable is knowing why you are doing what you are doing.

3. Paint a Picture: You will need to live differently than you do right now if you want to create a new life. This means that your life will begin to feel different right away…it needs to feel different. Find two hours of quiet time today or tomorrow. Go to the library and sit in a corner where you are uninterrupted and start writing. Answer these questions: (1) When I have created the life I want, what will it look like? (2) Where will I live? (3) Who will my friends be? (4) Where do I work? (5) What will my days look like? (6) What kind of person will I be? In life, visualization, increases your odds of accomplishing what you see. The more clear you can make your picture, the more likely you will end up exactly where you want to go. Every morning when you wake up spend one minute visualizing your new life, and do the same right before bed each evening.

4. Action Steps: Create a list of steps you will need to take to get to your new life. You should have a time frame in mind for accomplishing your goal, then set up yearly, monthly, weekly, and then daily steps you will create to get there. Review your action steps daily. While doing so, re-examine that picture you painted for yourself and remind yourself of your WHY. Make it a point to get uncomfortable daily. If you are uncomfortable, you are growing, and expanding outside your comfort zone. This is a sure sign that you are on your way to the life you have designed for yourself. Your daily life must look different starting now to create the life you want in the future. Even if it's tiny little changes to your old way of living, that's fine, but you cannot go on living the same way you used to if you are trying to create something new. As you go throughout your day ask yourself, is this something I would be doing in my new life? If the answer is no, you should immediately strike it from your day today.

5. Is that the truth?: Be accountable to yourself. Don't lie to yourself to feel better about your circumstances. If you are unhappy in your marriage, stand up and admit it. Find ways to make it a better marriage, and if that's just not possible get out of it. Do you LOVE your job? If you do not truly, in your heart, look forward to the challenge of another day in your career, make changes so that you love it again or if that's not possible, get out of that career. Too often we try to convince ourselves that we are happy with the situation we are in and we go day in and day out living a lie to ourselves, and this is the worst possible way to live.

What will you be most proud of yourself for in twenty years? If it's making a 360 degree turn in your life so that you live the life you always dreamed of, then shut down your computer right now, take out a pen and paper, and start planning.