How To Change Your Life: Part 1 – Become Clear

: Image by Leo Reynolds via Flickr

This is the first post in a series on how to change your life.

If you want to change your life, there are several steps you need to take. Think of it as a formula for success.

The first thing you need to do is to become clear about what you want to create in your life.

What does it mean to become clear about what you want?

It simply means that you know exactly what you want in life. It’s not a vague concept, or just wanting your life to generally be better. You know the precise details of what you want.

Why You Need To Be Clear About What You Want

When you are clear about what you want, the Universe, or (insert the higher power you believe in) will help you create it. It will start sending the people, ideas, opportunities, and supplies you need to make it happen. All you need to do is take action when these things come your way.

So what happens when you’re not clear about what you want? Here’s an example to illustrate what can go wrong…

Imagine that I’m the Universe. You come to me and tell me that you want a new house, but you aren’t sure what kind of house. Excitedly, I reply that I will provide all the materials you need to build the house and I will even send a few people your way to help you build it.

Exciting, right?

You bet, but there’s two problems with this scenario…

First, if you don’t know what kind of house you want, you could end up putting something together that you either hate, or that falls apart, or worse.

Second, since I also have no idea what kind of house you want, I could end up sending you the supplies and assistance to build a wooden hut with dirt floors.

If your goals are vague, it’s like having a blueprint that’s all smudged and faded. It’s difficult to know what’s needed to make that blueprint become reality.

How To Become Clear About What You Want

If you already have a vague idea of what you want

If you already have an idea of what you want, you can help yourself gain some more clarity by asking yourself questions.

If you want more money, how much? What exactly do you want to do with the money? Exactly how much income would you need to do those things?

If you want to lose weight, exactly how much would you need to weigh to look and feel your best?

If you want a new partner in your life, what exactly should this person look and be like?

If you have no idea what you want

If you’re having difficulty deciding on what you want to create, try this writing exercise. Spend twenty minutes writing out a list of everything that you think you might like in your life. Don’t do any editing while you write this list, just put down everything that comes to mind.

Once you have your list, go through and compare the first item on your list to the second item. Decide which one would you like more, then put a line through the other item.

Now, compare the item you choose to the next item on your list and again cross out the one you would like less. Keep going down your list in this fashion until you’ve crossed out every item on your list but one. That remaining item is the one thing that you want to create most in your life right now.

Write It Down

Now that you’re clear on what you want to create, write it down. You might want to use one index card for each thing you want to create. Keep the cards handy and review them every day. That way you can keep yourself clear and focused on exactly what you want to create.

A goal in your head is just an idea. A goal on paper is more apt to become reality.

Be sure to check out the next post in this series when we will be discussing the next step of how to change your life.