Different Areas of Your Life

You have your lists of wants, balanced in the different areas of your life. You have checked them against your values, and each supports the other. Now, how do we turn those "wants" into meaningful and achievable goals?

Today, take one of your Balance Wheel sections. One that is always important to me is Family. Traveling as much as I do, it would be very easy for me to lose contact with my children and grandchildren. So, one of my goals is to spend time with each of them, and for them to know that I am always available.

Now, it is important to understand the difference between "want to" and "do." "Wants" set up the "do's" in your life, and your goals will need to be written to reflect the "do." So, when my goal is to spend time with each grandchild, I write the goal like this: "I spend quality time with each of my grandchildren. They all know how important they are to me."

Suppose that you are a single mother, trying to balance work and home and family. It is a difficult road to travel, one filled with many choices. You want to spend as much time with your family, but you have to work. Guilt kicks in as you attempt to do it all. Now, thinking of work as a "have to" causes additional stress, which can shadow your work and home time. To remove the "have to" from work would help a lot, so your goal would be written as, "I love the work I do, because it affords me what I need to spend time with my kids."

One final tip: When you write out your "wants" and goals, make sure you write them in the present tense - the future as now. Take out the "going to" and replace it with "I am." You are seeing your future as if it has already happened.

Take each of your Balance Wheel "wants" and turn them into goals for the future, written in the present tense. You have come a long way in the last few days, and have started on the path to a successful 2012!

 

Yesterday, we talked about the value of setting goals

Yesterday, we talked about the value of setting goals, about how a goal creates a gap that our minds are programmed to close - either forward or backward, depending upon how strong the picture is. This is why change can sometimes be difficult, because the new picture of where we want to be isn't as strong as the need to maintain current reality.

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In order to move ahead, to reach goals that we have set for ourselves, we need to make the future picture of what we want more inviting, more attractive, more necessary than staying in our current reality. This is easier than it sounds, because of two things innate in human beings. We have the ability to use "forethought" - looking forward - and to use our imaginations. In other words, we can look ahead and dream of a future. As far as we know, no other creature on earth has these two abilities.

When we set a goal, and create that gap I mentioned yesterday, energy and creativity are unleashed in our minds. Those dreams of the future cause ideas and drive to close the gap - and we are tremendously creative creatures! We can dream of just about anything, and make those dreams reality.

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One more piece: As we near completion of the goal or dream, we no longer need the energy and creativity. Drive and ideas disappear. We have closed the gap, and creativity is no longer needed. Effectively, you shut down. You're done. You compare where you wanted to be with where you have landed, and it is the same place, the same answer.

Goal achievement is a time for a little celebration! Each of us deserves a little pat on the back for a job well done. But keep in mind that we now shut down, and future growth is put on hold.

I have one more thought in this 2012 Trilogy. See you tomorrow.

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Playing the Game of Life to Win

Playing the Game of Life to Win

Through this very same process you can Deliberately Create a successful business, more sales, a beautiful home, education for your children, fulfilling relationships or anything else you desire.

However, Deliberate Creation is not something that you can just acceptintellectually. That was my problem in the beginning. I understood itintellectually, but I did not ACT on my beliefs.

There are two kinds of people:

1. Those who play the game of life TO WIN. (Take Action on what they KNOW.)
2. Those who play the game of life to NOT TO LOSE. (Keep collecting more information and avoid taking Action.)

I fell into the second category. I had all the information I needed, but I did not take action.

This is the reason why most people do not have what they want. Their true or hidden goal is not to get what they want, but to avoid failure and disappointment. So they do nothing. They just read and study and accumulate more information.

You always have a choice. You can play the game of life to AVOID LOSING and live an unstable, stressful life of limitation in which, no matter how much you read and study this stuff, you will never CONSISTENTLY get what you want, or..…

You can play the game of life to WIN and DO WHAT YOU KNOW. When you do, your life will no longer be about survival, but about experiencing joy and abundance and creating anything you desire regardless of your current circumstances, the economy or any other perceived obstacle.

Most Important Things

One of the most important things when you want to change something in your life is to be coachable, as doing it all by yourself is like walking blind folded along a busy motorway, it is full of hazards but none that you cannot out maneuver without support and knowledge, if you are willing to listen and learn.

The great news is that NOBODY has ever done and achieved anything all by themselves, there is no cowardice in having help. Whatever it is you want to change, somebody somewhere has already done the same thing and their information and experiences are their to help you. We live in a world of information overload, it is available on the internet, books, magazines anywhere and everywhere. There has never been a better time in history to have the life you want and live exactly how and where you want.

Being coachable opens up new horizons, new possibilities in a world where generally there is more freedom than ever, why not be part of it, learn from it and achieve with it. All of us think that we are stuck in a rut, or a certain way of living, but we can change we can make things different. As soon as we want to, learning and trusting in a coach and ourselves is a huge step of faith, but the outcomes are well worth the work and effort.

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Making Changes

One of the things that often stop us from making changes for ourselves are the people around us, because when we change it affects others. We put off, procrastinate and make every excuse under the sun as to why now is not a good time. Do we really do ourselves and them justice but being unhappy, miserable and unsettled. 

What lessons do we teach our children about life, relationships and self worth? Sometime...no often they are not easy choices, but once the choice is made change seems that much easier. People around us see a change in us, more focused, happier, fulfilled in knowing we are achieving something for ourselves and for them.

Yes, there will be people who do not share our dreams and goals, they may even be very negative as to our ability to change.... as “you know how you are”. No single human being is made or set in concrete, there are no written laws that you must be constrained to one type of life, income, job, relationship, place etc etc these are all choices. Choices that can be changed, adapted and altered..

Yes, it is scary the unknown is always scary but you never have to do it alone as there are always people who have done it before, look for them, use their knowledge, their information, see yourself in the new position. Go into shops and try on the new clothes, jewelery, test drive the car, visit houses you want, get training for the new job you want. It takes effort and determination to get from one place to another, it is a journey and just like any journey there are things along the way, so don´t give up, believe in yourself and what you want to achieve.

Just make your choices and go get it....

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Thought for January