The 3 Ways You Can Change Your Life

Because change is what will get you from the life you’re living now, to the life you want to be living.

And when I say change, it’s not always big, radical, sweeping change.

It can be changes in specific areas of your life where you would want to do better, or get a positive, satisfying result.

Or maybe, you don’t really want change.  You’re pretty happy where you are, and you just want to get some important things done and happening in your life right now.

I’d like to share some tips on how you can make things happen, and make positive changes that will stick happen in your life.  If you want to get somewhere else from where you are now, you’ve got to strengthen the good things you’ve got going on, and infuse, create the new things, the change, that you want.

Because what got you here, won’t get you there.

The 3 Ways To Change Your Life.

To have any meaningful, lasting change in your life, no matter how small, takes doing.  It takes action.

And for some of us, and in some cases, the results may take time to show.  But then again, we’re here for the long-term.

The magic, the realization of results, is in the doing.  And it doesn’t have to be perfect; it’s journey of learning, and doing, and learning, and doing again.  Over and over.

The reason why we feel and become stagnant in our lives, is either we stop learning, and just do the same things over and over again, or we stop doing, and keep on learning, but don’t take any action that has any tangible impact on our world and ourselves.

What more if we stop learning AND doing?

To create meaningful change, we must Shift, Build, and Choose.

Shift

One of the ways to get change, and its process, started, is to literally change what you can.

I like to think of it as a shift, from one place to another, from one thing to another, something more better, more useful, more apt for you and what you want to do.

There’s a movement that has to happen, whether in how we do things, what we surround ourselves with, and even what and how we think.

Environment.  Because our environment, what we surround ourselves with, can have a direct effect on us.  Shifting our environment can mean, where we live, where we work, the places we frequent.

Shifting our environment can also mean choosing who we surround ourselves with, and what information and media we take in and expose ourselves to.

Making a shift in your environment can even be as simple as putting up a reminder sign at your desk, or putting your running outfit and shoes at the foot of your bed in the evening, so it’s easier for you to get jogging in the morning.

Beliefs.  What we believe, influences how we see, interpret, and perceive the world and our surroundings, which ultimately influences what we do and how we react.

So if you believe that money is the hardest thing in the world to earn, like I did before, do you think you would be earning a lot of money?

Even without the results, it’s our beliefs that have to shift first if we want to have a shot at turning what we want into reality.  We may be saying we want a lot of money, but if we believe it’s not an important thing, and that it’s hard to earn, those beliefs feed into how we act, think, and react.

So without us knowing it, we are self-sabotaging our chances of success, if we don’t shift our beliefs into those that support us, encourage us, and enable us to get the results and change we want.

Habits.  We may have bad habits holding us back.  Watching too much television, or mindless internet surfing.  I have wasted hours and hours because I used to have a habit of checking Facebook and email in the morning, which then led to watching videos on Youtube, which led to more internet surfing, which led to a whole morning getting nothing done.

Then, we have to shift the habits into something useful and will serve us in a positive manner.  I then worked on shifting my usual habit of procrastination when I sit in front of my computer in the morning, into productive self study and writing time.  I still feel busy, and no longer bored.

And at the end of the morning, no longer guilty that I had wasted a whole morning.  Shift bad habits into productive and positive habits.

Build

Life is lived taking ourselves and our past experiences, and using that to build the future we want.  It’s building on top of what we already have, and eventually transforming into something greater than what we can imagine.

Building is then one avenue to create lasting change in our lives.  It’s creating what we currently don’t have, what we currently lack, in a sustainable manner that will stick.

When it comes to building for change, discipline and consistency is key.

Habits.  One way of building change into your life is to build new habits.  There is power in the small daily wins that habits bring, because the benefits compound over time, and slowly, you’ll find yourself transported to a better place than you thought you would be.

One habit that high performing individuals have built for themselves is a morning startup habit.  It’s the sequence of activities that they actively do to start their day, and get themselves prepared, energized, and ready for what comes their way.  This helps them perform at a high level, and separate themselves from the rest of the pack.

Here’s a tip when building new habits: start small.

Strength.  Research shows that exercise can be a keystone habit.  That means that people who start exercising show considerable improvements in other areas of their life.

Exercise also makes the body release endorphins, the body’s natural happy hormone.  Physical activity can make us feel happier.  And physical activity and exercise has also been proven to help the brain function.

Not to mention physical activity contributes to building strength and over-all wellness, which is something we need to make lasting change in our lives.

Confidence.  Especially when we’ve been stuck in a rut.  Recovering from setbacks and rejection, our confidence in ourselves and our abilities is something we have to build back.  We’ll need the confidence to face the risks and uncertainty that comes along with change.

Get yourself out there, and focus on getting small, quick wins.  Remind yourself of the times you’ve succeeded, and the compliments and praises you received.

Here’s another confidence building activity you can do: exercise.

Skills.  Because what got you here won’t get you there.

Learning new skills, and improving and building upon what you already have can open new doors for you.  I remember a friend of mine who was a great account officer, but then had no clue on how to manage a team once he was promoted.

He had to learn a new skill: how to lead and manage, to get the results that he wanted.

Is there something you want to do in your life, but you feel you don’t have the time, energy, or resources to do so?  You can start small, and learn the basics first.  Don’t let excuses get in the way of your development.

Relationships.  The right people can have a positive, encouraging, and changing effect on other people.  It does you no good to coop yourself up alone, or so expose yourself to negative, unhelpful relationships.

Build healthy relationships with positive people.  Like-minded people, who strive to be better and want positive change to happen in their lives.  Reach out and connect to these people.  Be supported by them.  Support them as well.

No man is an island.  It takes a community to succeed.  The change you want to happen in your life, will then create a ripple effect touching your relationships.  Touching people’s lives.

Choose

There will be moments when you might be presented a choice: to abandon the change, or continue.  To remain faithful to the course, or take a detour.  To stop or go, say yes or no.

We’ve all got to choose.  Choose in favor of change.

Choose to have freedom.  to do what matters most to you.

The most powerful change comes not from a force outside, but from within.  Positive change comes mostly from an internal motivation; you’ve got to want it.  More than you need to, should to, must do, have to.

You want to.

You choose to.

Yourself.  At the end of the day, if you don’t choose yourself, no one else will.

It can be so easy for us to just accept what has been handed to us by the world on a silver platter.  But don’t forget that you control your life, and you always have a say in it.

Your choice is yours to make, and you have the power to make it, even when you don’t see or feel it.  Even when you’re to afraid.

You’ve got to choose to change.  Choose yourself to succeed.  And stay faithful to that choice.

What is life-giving.  Because a lot of people have stayed where they are, and have effectively died at 25, but continued on living.

Don’t be one of those people.  Choose what excites you, what gets you dreaming, sharing, going.  What would you do even if it’s for free?  What would allow you to be the best version of yourself?

It’s about making choices in the big and small moments.  Especially in the small moments.

What moves you forward.  Choose to keep on taking the next step, and the next step, and the next.

Choose to pick yourself up after a setback.  You’re here to choose yourself and to keep on shifting, building and choosing.

Keep on going.

What sets you free.  Choose what will give you the freedom to do what is dear to you, to do what is important to you.

Choose to hunker down and weather the storms, the rough times, the difficult moments.  Acknowledge them, respect them, and get through them.

Choose to build freedom in your life.

Start Building The Life You Want To Be Living

Change can be hard, and at times frustrating.  But change is life-giving and freeing, and gives us a shot at achieving what we normally would not be able to.  Ultimately, you’ve got to do something to achieve what matters most to you.

Shift, Build, and Choose.

 

What are you in the middle of shifting, building, or choosing right now? Please share in the comments below!