6 Techniques to Help You Gain Clarity on What You Want In Life
“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.”
~ Mahatma Ghandi ~
Do you ever find yourself pondering the question “What do I want in life?”. Many of us are afraid to ask ourselves that question, for fear that we have no idea, or no clue what we want. You might not even know where to begin to answer that question for yourself. Instead, you may choose to either drift along and play small, or move so fast, that you don’t give yourself the time or space to reflect on what you really want out of life.
Do you remember back in the day, when you were ten years old, and an adult asked you, what do you want to be when you grow up, your immediate response, without much thought was “I want to be a lawyer, or a doctor, or a rock star when I grow up”. Whatever your choice was, it was easy to dream big back then. No worries about judgment or criticism, or whether you would have enough money to fund your education. You simply just let possibility be the driver.
Are you willing to take a step back and recreate that mindset for yourself today, and explore the possibilities of what you want out of your life, right now, right here? I am going to share with you six steps that will help you land on what you want and move you in the direction of living forward.
1-Figure out what you need to make you happy.
This may sound easy, but it really isn’t. Slow yourself down and give some thought to what you need to make you happy. Is it financial freedom? love in your life? more time with your family? more balance between work and play? owning your own business?….etc. Grab a notebook, or pull up a blank page on your PC, and start jotting down a list of all the things that would make you happy. Once you have your list begin prioritizing them and give some thought to how you can create action behind each one.
2-Determine what really bothers you.
Figure out what upsets you and be specific about it. Don’t just say you hate your job, be clear about what you don’t like about your job. Is it your micro managing manager, or the unclear metrics that your performance is measured by? Is it, your meaningless workload? or all of the above. Once you’ve gotten clear on what you don’t like, the next step is to figure out what you’re going to do about it. Many of us get stuck right here. The reality is, if you want to find out what you want in life, you’ve got to be willing to fight for it, and be committed to changing the things that you don’t want. Your level of commitment to having the life you want has to be higher than your resistance.
People who get what they want tend to be the ones who make the effort to know what they want.
-Martha Beck
3- Create a Life Plan.
One of the most helpful ways to get what you want is to create a plan. Begin with the end in mind, and think about the vision you have for yourself. Get clear on what your goals are and put them down in writing. Get as specific as you can about the actions you need to take to accomplish your goals. Establish milestones and a timeline for yourself, and evaluate your progress and celebrate your wins.
4-Get Support.
It can be challenging to move out of your comfort zone and live in the area of possibility, and do it alone. It can be very rewarding to get a coach and get that push that you may need, or stretch your imagination in ways that allow you to see yourself in that dream job, or as a successful entrepreneur. Talking about what you want with a coach who can support you can help you think of new ideas, or resources that you may not have thought about. Working with a coach can help you remove hidden limitations you may have been applying to yourself.
5-Stay positive.
Having a positive mindset can make all the difference in accomplishing what you want. Believe that you’re practically 90% there, with the right attitude. Don’t get discouraged, just stay the course and be vigilant. Getting what you want out of life takes courage, commitment and confidence. Surround yourself with like-minded people and stay inspired.
6-Put Yourself First.
I know that may sound selfish but sometimes you just have to put yourself first. Ask yourself, if you weren’t tied down by a job, family or friends, what would you be doing right now? Remember, you only get one life, so make the most out of it and live life on your own terms. There’s always a way to get what you want. You just have to start by first knowing what you want. With clarity comes unstoppability.
Please feel free to share any additional tips in the spaces below that you think might help others in finding out what they want in life. I’d love to hear about what has worked for you.
Thanks for reading this post, if you enjoyed it, or it helped you in any way, I’d love to hear about it in the comment section below.