Hey, let me tell you exactly how to ‘fix’ your life!

or, more precisely, how YOU can tell YOU how to ‘fix’ your life.

I don’t know you personally. I wish I did, but I don’t. I don’t know the issues you’re dealing with. I don’t know if they are to do with your health, your mental attitude and outlook or maybe even your financial situation, or something entirely different. I just don’t know. And even if I did it’s not my place to tell you how to change things. I’d never dream of doing that. All I can do is offer suggestions … and a few ideas … hopefully some motivation … maybe even a little inspiration. But mainly it has to come from you, yourself.

Like I said, I don’t know your problems and the issues you’re dealing with. But you do. So examine your life. If you want to see some changes, start by writing down the issues that face you. Make a list (it always starts with a list!) …

If you want to fix your life, start with a list!

Okay, don’t be shy to say it like it is. Be blunt! Face your own situation squarely. The first step in changing things is to realise you have a problem. The next step is to determine that you won’t stand for it any longer. Things will change. For too long you’ve put up with the status quo. It’s time things changed, and maybe the most important step if you want to fix your life is to determine resolutely, even fiercely, that THINGS MUST CHANGE!

It’s time to make some changes!
Your list might contain lines like some of these …

• I’m in terrible shape. Okay, I’m a slob!
• Reaching and tying my shoelaces is becoming more and more of a major challenge.
• Climbing the stairs is starting to feel like I’m making an ascent on the Matterhorn.
• I get out of breath just thinking about exercise!
• I eat like a pig … ugh!
• My eating pattern is … okay, let’s be honest, it’s not a pattern, it’s chaos!
• I can’t remember being really healthy.
• I get infections all the time.
• I take medication every single day!
• I get headaches all the time.
• I feel depressed!
• I can’t afford the basics.
• I argue with my wife/husband/partner about money … all the time.
• We never go anywhere.
• Bills seems to be stacking up … the thought of it is making me sick.
• My job stinks!
• I hate my life!
• I want to make changes, I really do … but somehow I never get round to it.
• I always wanted … to be an artist … to be a writer … to be a business owner … to work with kids … to work with animals … to be a musician … to be an architect … to learn to fly a plane … to go scuba diving … to take a cruise … to buy a really good car, for cash! … to live a really fulfilled life …
• What happened to my life??
• I’m terrified that I might fail … I’ve tried before and failed, again and again.

Some of these things might strike a chord with you, or your list might be completely different and contain not a single word of that list. That’s fine. That’s as is should be, because it’s your business, not mine. But be honest. If you’re going to take the time to write a list like this, its only value will lie in the fact that it’s completely genuine, and completely personal to you. And completely, unashamedly, honest. Painfully honest!

Making that list might be uncomfortable for you. It should be! Might even be traumatic. But it needs to be done. Make yourself take a long hard look at your life. Strip it to the bare bones and inspect it carefully and dispassionately. How does it look? Are you totally satisfied with the way things are (probably not, I’m guessing, otherwise you probably wouldn’t be reading this), or does it make you feel miserable and uncomfortable? Maybe it really is time to buckle down and fix your life.

Don’t panic!

Don’t despair. Life has a way of getting away from us. Time moves on regardless, and suddenly we’re five or ten years older and nothing much has changed. Sometimes it’s literally shocking to us that we’ve let things slip so badly. We haven’t achieved what we set out to do. We haven’t ticked off life’s goals. We haven’t made it. But hey, don’t panic, really. It happens to us all, or at least to most of us.

The important thing, at this stage, is that you’re finally recognising your situation. You’re being honest with yourself. Things get out of control and go way off-track because we take our eyes off the prize. You’re finally taking the blindfold off and staring your life squarely in the face … now you’re seeing what your life has become. And the beauty of this is that you can always, always, change things. It’s never too late!

Tackle your own problems in your own way

Just like I don’t know your personal issues, I don’t know how you want to tackle them. It’s none of my business. You may well have decided to fix your life, but how you do it is entirely up to you. But here’s a few suggestions, if I may. You can take from them whatever seems to resonate with you. I’m not telling you how to deal with these things, just offering a few ideas you might like to consider.

• You might want to work out a sensible eating plan.
• You might want to start a regular exercise routine (nothing extreme, if you’re out of shape).
• You might want to tackle your financial problems by dealing with your debts.
• You might want to start using affirmations.
• You might want to start using tapping (or EFT, Emotional Freedom Techniques – see the image →).
• You might want to start meditating.
• You might want to start regular visualisation.
• You might want to review your job situation – unless and until you do, you’re stuck right where you are now.
• You might want to start looking into working for yourself – it won’t happen by accident!
• You might want to start keeping a journal – tracking your progress can help.
• You might want to start changing your self-image.
• You might want to start making an effort to be more approachable, more outgoing, more easygoing.
• You might want to spend less time watching TV!
• You might want to start taking life less seriously, and enjoying the moment.
• You might want to just stop worrying!
• You might want to make it your mission to smile more often.
• You might want to make it a habit to look for ways to help other people.
• You might want to make gratitude a habit – it’s one of the best habits you could ever forge.
• You might want to re-evaluate things and take a radically different approach.

A word of caution

Don’t try to do everything at once. Don’t try to change your entire life overnight. It would be nice if you could manage it, but if you were that effective at bringing about change you probably wouldn’t be in the state you’re in 🙂 And there’s really no need to rush. Steady progress will always get you to your goal, whereas a headlong rush sometimes means you come off the rails and end up nowhere (Yes, your honour, guilty as charged!). Remember, even champions and top entrepreneurs and top celebrities usually make it due to steady progress over a period, so be content with that approach. Remember as well that an ‘overnight success’ usually comes after years of work and dedication.

When to start …

Start today! Right now! The problems that beset you only appeared in your life because you got into the habit of not taking action. That’s not just a bad habit, it’s a deadly habit. Deadly because it kills your hopes and dreams. It halts your progress dead in its tracks. It puts you entire life on hold. Not taking action is responsible for all your problems.

Start taking action right away. That might mean starting that list, the one that shows you what your life has become, or it might mean taking action to improve your diet. It might mean you start doing a little bit of exercise every day, even if it’s only for a minute or two. It might mean you start learning how to change your self-image. It might mean you start smiling … immediately, and so often that your face actually starts to ache a bit from all the exercise it’s suddenly getting! It might mean you actively go out and find someone to help. It might mean you start tackling your financial problems right now, today. It might mean something else entirely, I just don’t know.

Once again, I don’t know what taking action will actually mean to you, it will depend entirely on your personal situation, on your perception of your problems, and on your own ideas of how to put them into action and fix your life. But one way or another, you need to take action. You need to do something!

Until you start to actually do something, nothing will change, you can depend on that. And if that’s what you’re going to settle for, then you’d better get used to the situation summed up by that first list of yours, the one that shows you what your life is like right now. Because without taking action, that’s exactly what your life is going to look life for the forseeable future.

Don’t let that happen! Make the right choice!
START TAKING ACTION TODAY!