Take Charge of Your Life and Make this the Best Year Yet

“Make New Year’s goals. Dig within, and discover what you would like to have happen in your life this year. This helps you do your part. It is an affirmation that you’re interested in fully living life in the year to come.” ~ Melody Beattie

Do you feel like you’re barely keeping up? That you’re not making any progress forward? It can be discouraging if  past attempts at changing something in your life have failed. If you’re wondering  how you can take charge of your life, this post is for you…

To begin with, does your usual list of New Year’s Resolutions look something like the following?

• Lose Weight
• Getting Organized
• Spend Less, Save More
• Enjoy Life to the Fullest
• Stay Fit and Healthy
• Learn Something Exciting
• Quit Smoking
• Help Others in Their Dreams
• Fall in Love
• Spend More Time with Family

What would happen if your list looked like this instead?

• Replace sugary drinks with life-sustaining water for a more youthful, energetic body.
• Spend 15 minutes every morning organizing one thing (a file/drawer/closet) until it’s done. Then move onto the next project.
• Put $400 in a separate savings account every month, so I don’t have to worry when I retire.
• Connect with one person I’ve lost touch with or wish to meet every week.
• Walk 30 minutes every day to get away from work and enjoy the joy of  nature.
• Spend the hour between 8pm and 9pm learning something that I really want to know.

Do you see how putting the emphasis on a very specific activity, rather than on a huge goal, gives you wins that make you want to keep moving forward? Keep in mind that New Year’s Resolutions often don’t work because they’re usually desires that have no structure, plan or steps. And they often rely solely on willpower. 

The truth is that the lifestyle you have today is a result of a lifetime of choices that can’t be changed in the blink of an eye. Our history lives inside of us; it becomes part of us; it is who we are. We carry it in our bodies, until we mindfully overwrite  it.  Yes,  you can rewrite your story. 

However, it’s important to become very aware of what the whole story is that has lodged within you.  That’s why it takes time, patience and compassion to take charge of your life. We can’t expect instant results.

Real change involves being willing to be quiet with yourself, think deeply and prepare yourself internally before you ever think about setting a goal. Then, when your internal self creates a supportive environment, the goal you want to work on will become evident. Now you’re set to make it succeed!

To take charge of your life and create lasting change, it’s important to be:

• Methodical
• Consistent
• Realistic while Dreaming Big

Rather than resolutions, I’ve found an approach that has been working for me for a number of years now. It focuses on creating the best year yet. (A great resource is Jinny Ditzler’s book: Your Best Year Yet!: Ten Questions for Making the Next Twelve Months Your Most Successful Ever.) I use a similar process of thinking and executing a realistic plan in a systematic way.

I start thinking about it in October of every year. Then during the months of November and December, I start to get new ideas for the upcoming year. By January, I’ve reviewed the previous year and created new goals along with the steps to get me there.

Don’t worry, if you haven’t given it much thought yet. You still have time to set yourself up for wonderful success no matter what day of the year it is.

Start with where you are today and use this process for the best year yet to help you take charge of your life. Here are the steps…

1. Use the Walt Disney Strategy to create workable goals for next year. This model involves exploring new ideas from three different perceptual positions. 
2. Create a new life system. For example, rather than just deciding to exercise more, determine which activity gives you the most joy  and schedule how often you will workout each week.
3. Get the right support or buddy system. Don’t just tell anybody about your plans. Only share your plans with the yea-sayers. Avoid the downers and nay-sayers. Look for people that are already mastering the skill or have similar motivation to succeed.
4. Set up a daily or weekly routine to work on the steps.
5. Adjust as new information comes in. You may need to modify your goals to get the results that are important to you.
6. Most importantly, stay connected to your purpose. It will continue to reignite the passion and keep you on task.

So, what’s standing in the way of your dream? Your answer will either be an internal or external obstacle. For instance, thinking “there’s no way I can do this” is an internal block. Not having enough money is an external barrier. However neither one can stop you, if you take charge of your life. 

• Are you ready to slow down and reflect so you can be intentional and mindful about what you really want?
• Do you want to be focused rather than reacting to whatever happens?
• Are you tired of settling and making do with what you have?
• Do you want to direct your energy to what’s most important to you?
• Do you want to make sure you’re not missing out on the best life ever?
• Do you want to live up to your fullest potential?

If you answered “Yes!” to these questions, then  embodiment coaching may be the answer for how you finally take charge of your life! 

When you practice embodiment, you value, motivate, and bring out the best in yourself and others. If you’d like to explore this further, download my free report, 10 Steps to an Embodied Practice. Even if you don’t plan on becoming a coach, the principles can be applied to both your life and your business. And I invite you to think seriously about attending my Embodied Coach School. A new session always begins at the start of each new year.