August 2017

Just the idea of “reinventing yourself” means you’re looking for grand scale changes, in your life, not small shifts.

Reinventing yourself…is hard work.  But it’s worth it!!

The good news is, once you get a taste of your potential you’ll have all the motivation you’ll need.

TO START, you need to … SLOWING DOWN!  

Most people who are tired of their lives are just physically TIRED!

They make themselves busy, so they don’t feel unhappy.  Completely EXHAUSTED from working or things they think will bring them meaning and fulfillment. (Like, buying toys, cars, houses, vacations, expensive dinners)

I know because I was one of them.

It was after years of struggling with loss and grief missing a loved one, and overwork that I found myself exhausted. So I woke up one morning with a decision I had to change.  

And that is where my trouble began.  

I couldn’t move forward because I didn’t have any idea of what I wanted to GO TOWARDS!  I’d been so focused on escaping my miserable life to stop and think about what I wanted.

Where you focus becomes your reality.  (My miserable life, was mine.)

So, I turned off my TV.  Got up 2 hours earlier and started spending time figuring out what I wanted.

 

Here Are My Top Six Tips

#1-  A great place to start is to know exactly what you are doing.  How you spend your time and your money?  

 BECAUSE: The way you live your day is the way you live your life.

 

#2- Next look at the ‘BIG THEME CHANGES” you would like to make.  Start by asking yourself what’s not working in your life?  Then try to put them in order of priority.  (Examples)

– Maybe you want to lose weight

– Your job or career.

– Relationships

– Lifestyle needs, like a cleaner environment, closeness to family members.

Understanding what you don’t want helps you to define what you do.

These revelations will help you develop your roadmap/ blueprint for mapping out your change.  Examining these details lead me to my decision to move & live abroad, Spain.  Something I did not consider in the beginning.

 

#3-Once you understand your “BIG THEME CHANGES,” next ask yourself, what do you think will happen to you emotionally, physically romantically… financially once they are solved?  
– More time to travel
– More time with family
– More time to focus on other interests, hobbies.
– It might be that you want to volunteer more
– Healthier, less stress…

– You would find the love of your life

Ask yourself… do making those changes give me the feeling I want to have in my new life?  You may reprioritize what you want to change once you have answered this question.

The most significant prize here… in answering these questions will be the clarity that you will get and that will sustain you when times get hard.

 

#4-Now, imagine you living your reinvented life.  How will your (in detail) days, weeks, months look & feel?

This daydreaming is the fun part! Let your mind go… but write it all down. Find photos, add new foods if that is a part of the change.

Create an environment in your home to allow you to dream (see my 5 tips here to help), light a candle draw a bath as you live these experiences in your head.

Take your time with this exercise. Revisit this practice as you become more evident in your new life goals.

 

#5-Write your “reinvented you” start date. If you are a planner or like to use planners/calendar, this part is for you. 

The date you will start living your new life.

No goals set are no goals accomplished.

Making a plan helps you be more committed to the process. What you learn from the simple process of working towards your date and how to make it happen… is invaluable!

Things will come up you haven’t considered.

Having a deadline exposed me to fears and issues I hadn’t thought of and made me uncomfortable. Allowing me to look at them with moderate pressure from a date, and solve them… or make plan shifts. Helping me not to become derailed at the last minute.

 

#6- Keep your plans of “reinvention” to yourself.

Reinventing yourself can be much harder if the ones you love or respect don’t understand. Well-meaning parents may worry about your safety or what you are “giving up” and disagree. Workmates and friends might take your desire to change personally as a rejection, of their own lifestyle choices.

There will be a time to tell them once you have a firm foundation on how your reinvented life will appear.  Later their questions can help in a “Devil’s Advocate” type of discussion.

Finally, ask for their support. It will be given easily once they’ve seen you’ve thought your plan through.

 

Have you ever changed something significant in your life that you can share? Let’s start a discussion.

With love and support!