What choices are you making today that define who you are? The first principle that Jack Canfield teaches in his book The Success Principles (which I highly recommend reading) is to “Take 100% Responsibility for Your Life”. You are responsible for where you are right now! Think of yourself as the CEO of your life. Your life is the greatest thing you will ever manage and you are responsible for every choice you make. Designing your life enables you to identify exactly who it is you want to be and what it is you want to do.
Designing Your Life
Designing your life demands that you have an open mind. It bestows power and trust in the palms of your hands to construct your life and live it the way that is best for you. Imagine this process as being somewhat similar to flipping a house. Sometimes you have to take a home down to its studs to rebuild something better. It takes a lot of work, but in the end… it is so worth it!
Here are a few actions you can take to design your life.
Demolition Day
Just like when you are flipping a house, designing your life can sometimes require the need for a wee bit of demolition. In order to get where you want to go, you may need to break down a few walls, tear down a few floors, and evaluate a few things about your foundation.
To determine what needs to be changed, you have to consider what is working for you as well as what is not working for you. Demolition day requires us to question what we know and whether or not it is still going to take us in the direction of our goals.
Renovation
After this process of self-reflection is complete, you are ready to begin the renovation process. You are now prepared to move and think differently. How do you want to engage with people every day? What is your degree of dedication and performance in the workplace?
Other Actions to Design Your Life
There are other actions you can take to design your life despite the circumstances that may be influencing you.
Make a Plan – What is your three to five-year plan? You may just be trying your best to make it through today but having a plan can help to ensure that what you do every day, the people you surround yourself with, and the plans you are making are going to take you into the future you desire.
Accept Those Things You Cannot Change – Another aspect of designing your life is accepting those areas in life that you cannot control or change. People often tell us that if we do not like something that is happening, take steps to change it. One of my favorite quotes states that, “If you don’t like where you are, move! You are not a tree.” But what about those things we cannot change? What should you do? You may have to make the hard decision, for example, to move away from a city that you do not like, or you may have to change jobs or take steps to entrepreneurship if there is no opportunity for growth with your current work situation.
What Impact Do You Want to Have on the Lives of Others? – The critical thing to consider with this question is understanding what role that you hope to play in the lives of others. The decisions we make or the actions we take can have a positive or negative impact on another person. We can be a source of positive energy, but we can also be a source of negative energy.
Take a Chance – Do not miss an opportunity to take a chance or try different things. Find opportunities to step outside of your comfort zone. Designing your life does not mean you have to build rigid walls around everything you do or draw a hard line for the decisions you make. If you find you are going in one direction and something happens that creates a desire to change directions, that is ok. Your new path may lead you to an even better future. Remember, you own the blueprint for your life and you have the power to design it the way that you want it!