Five Actions to Make 2019 the Best Ever

“There is no passion to be found in playing small – settling for a life that is less than you are capable of living.”

– Nelson Mandela

Change … or same old, same old?

In the penultimate post of 2018 (see The Time Has Come to Think of Many Things) I encouraged readers to use the precious holiday break to take time to relax, reflect and get in touch with their inner beings, before being whisked back on to the treadmill of life.

I wonder what it is that you may have identified in your life that you want to change this year? Will you have the strength and courage to take the actions needed to propel yourself along the desired path of change, or will you allow yourself to slip back into your ‘same old, same old’ ways?

Five simple yet powerful actions

If you’ve already made the mental leap to pursue change and get more out of life, I’d like to offer just five simple, yet powerful suggested actions that should help you make 2019 everything you want it to be.

ACTION 1: Resolve to take back control

The reason life can seem like a treadmill, rat race or never ending struggle is because we allow life to control us, rather than acting to take control of it. As we frantically try to juggle all the balls that life throws our way, we lose the ability to reflect on which if any of the balls are really important to us.

Taking back control of your life has nothing to do with being a ‘controlling’ personality, bossing people around or imposing yourself on others. It has everything to do with adopting a ‘responsibility’ mindset.

You are the only one who can take the actions required to live the life you want to live. Say after me: “If it’s to be, it’s up to me!”

So, stop waiting for your partner to change, for your manager to see reason, for the government to help, or for your number to come up in the lottery … commit to do what you need to do for you.

ACTION 2: Consciously seek balance in your life

It’s quite natural for human beings to seek to bring balance to their basic needs but for most of us who live reactively, without taking responsibility or being in control, those attempts to bring about balance are often taken without conscious thought about the repercussions, and can have negative and even disastrous results.

For example, if life becomes too boring we may spice it up by adding drugs, alcohol, affairs, and other dangerous activities. If we feel unloved, insignificant or disrespected we may threaten others, turn to crime or join a gang to heighten our significance.

By living consciously – being fully aware that you are in control of your life, that you can choose the actions you take and that actions have certain consequences – you can act to bring more balance into your daily life by adopting behaviours that are constructive rather than destructive.

By living a life in which your basic needs are met, and in harmonious balance, you can focus on your higher needs, like growth and contribution.

ACTION 3: Take time to identify your values

If you want to live a great life you first have to know what constitutes a great life!

Your top values reflect your personal judgement of what is most important in life and your hierarchy of values is unique to you.

Each one of us is different. What may be of utmost importance in life to you, may be of little importance to me. And even if we share some values, how you prioritise them may be quite different from the way I choose to prioritise them.

The important thing is to really know and understand what your values are. This may sound simple but take it from someone who has been in the life coaching business for many years, relatively few people really know, with authenticity what their hierarchy of values looks like!

And don’t make the mistake of thinking that values are set in stone. Just like everything else in your life, you can design your value system to reflect the life you most desire.

ACTION 4: Live by your values

When you take time to identify what is genuinely important to you, you will be rewarded with an amazing new clarity of focus.

If you then commit to live your life in accordance with your true values, you will have the opportunity to experience levels of joy and fulfilment that you may not previously have thought possible.

ACTION 5: Find out what you’re here to do

When you consistently live a value driven – rather than a needs driven – life, you start to reap the rewards that come from being in control and doing what’s really important to you, rather than doing what others want, or what you think you ought to do or what you think is expected of you.

The ultimate leap involves finding out what your purpose is in life and how you can best contribute to your family, friends, community, society and indeed the world around you.

That is the route to a life of real personal freedom and great contentment.

BONUS ACTION: Get professional help

Acting on the five tips that I’ve offered above is not nearly as easy as it may sound.

New Insights trained life coaches are equipped with the expertise and a transformational coaching system that can help you do all of the above – and much more – in a period of just 6-7 months.

For what is, in relative terms, a tiny investment of your time and money, you could make 2019, and every year after it, the best ever!

Happy New Year!