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I found this by Gwen Bell How to create your personal manifesto which I am finding an interesting addition to my daily action list . With the Big election coming up in Great Britain and many politicians promoting their manifesto’s to win votes, The article really grabbed my attention.
As you will see from the article there are many ways to approach your personal manifesto, Gwen suggests creating a vision map (Which may also be called a vision board) selecting images from magazines, etc and creating a vision for yourself. She suggests putting aside an hour but I have been collecting images over the last few days, cutting them out and putting them all together as I go along. The life list is also brilliant, writing down 100 things to do/dream/live/go/be in your life. Just putting pen to paper and opening up to that phrase ” I love living” was motivating. I found it really helpful to continue to write even if my negative thinking said things like ” That’s just not going to happen, is it?!”. Letting the images that I am collecting for the vision map inspire my life list has helped too, as they are one of the same thing. For me I am just using this as an on going activity, adding images to the map and things to The Life list as I am go along. It keeps the focus on the good I am looking for in my life and allows me to create a new vision of how I want to live my life..
Changing for the better………
Today I hit the double regarding my previous post 7 effective habits for a positive change ( I know, it sounds great doesn\’t it)
- I took action outside of my ‘comfort zone’
- I took a form of exercise.
I rejoined my local gym!
Once again, my good old pal procrastination showed up to congratulate me on my decision and said ‘ go tomorrow’ but I went today. I reintroduced myself to the treadmill and the weights. I took it nice and easy and completely felt better for going. I am beginning to see that the negative voice of procrastination is the real problem, not actually going to the gym. This is explained in this video;
I came across this while watching the video that started all of this
However, right now, the first step is defeating the negative ‘little voice’ inorder to get to the gym and today I did that!
from here on in, it’s applying the same principle to my workouts.
Changing for the better…
The first thing I have noticed about writing in a notebook, with specific headings as a guide, is the focus it has given me. For the last few days I have put this idea of a \”I love living\” journal into my morning routine (instead of reading the newspaper) and have found it is helping me. Once I get through the procrastinating thoughts, “go on, read the newspaper you need to be the first to found out what’s happening in the world (like now)” and “Meditation! Not today. You need to get on with your day, you havent got time for that”, I take action anyway and experience a change;
- I have increased my meditation space from 5 mins to 10mins as I find I need 5 mins to settle in.
- My action list has helped me commit to writing the journal and to sit down and meditate as they are both feature on the list.
- I have contacted a company that can help with my work ( I am a singer) I have a meeting with them next Thursday. Contacting them was written down as one thing that will challenge me and take me out of my ‘comfort zone’. I have put off contacting this company for over a year, fearing they may say “No” and the opposite happened – They were delighted to hear from me.
I found this article by Jonathan Mead of illuminatedmind.net
under Practice makes the master; Jonathan says “start small and don’t let your fear of failure or self doubt stop you taking action”
Changing for the better…
Following on from my last post about finding out what I can do today, right now, and continue to do to start changing for the better I came across these;
1) Where do you start with your own personal development
2) 7 effective habits for positive life change which are;
- Wake up earlier
- meditate regular
- Cut sugar from your diet
- Take part in some form of exercise
- get out of your comfort zone at least once a day
- be grateful and make note of it
- ( the last one is using the sites entrainment products)
So I now have six things I can work with straight away while looking at the 3 development areas spiritual/emotional, physical and mental. I bought a notebook yesterday (as suggested in the 1st article. pic below!!) What I did was write on the 1st page ; “I love living. I have a great time with my life and I want to share it” as this was the statement that started me out on this journey. Then on the a new page I wrote today’s date: 9th April 2010 and underneath I wrote the heading;
Gratitude: things to be grateful for:
1:
2:
3:
4:
5:
Then heading;
Meditation:
I will sit for 5 mins and meditate this morning
Then Heading:
Action list: Things to take action on today at least 1 challenging me and taking me out of my ‘Comfort Zone’.
- Go for a walk ( example)
- write my blog (example)
- Eat a healthy meal (example)
- Call my brother, which I have been avoiding for months.
Then heading;
Belief statement;
“I Love living. I have a great life and I want to share it.”
The Will Smith video that started this journey talks about the first step is that, before anybody else in the world believes it, is that YOU have to believe it. I think writing it down will help me to believe.
Finally, I wrote this first thing this morning (which in my case was 10:00am).I replaced reading the morning newspaper with writing in the notebook while having my tea and toast. When I finished writing I sat for the 5 mins meditation. I just sat with my eyes closed and reflected on the gratitude list I had written. I then was ready to do the things on my action list for the day. Here is what it looked like;
At 1st I did find the gratitude list difficult but I was trying too hard. I just needed to think of simple things like the food in front of me.
The idea is to now continue this practice for at least 21 days and keep changing for the better…
I am motivated and ready to go but where do I start? I google ;how to change your life, how to have a great life, positive ideas. There is vast amounts of information. It seems I am not alone, millions of people want to live a great life too and start changing for the better (don’t we all?) but there are also millions of people, books, ideas and articles that talk about the answer to leading a great life!! I decide to keep it simple and start a different approach; what can I do today?, right now, and continue to do on a daily basis that could start the change? This turned out to be another inspiring and motivating find.
I came across a search statistic talking about how we should use our time wisely because the average human being lives approximitely 25,000 days (70 years) although in some countries such as Swaziland life expectancy can be a little as 12,000 days (31 years) It’s completely blown me away. Somehow changing the unit of measurement from years to days has given a whole new perspective to the phrase “Life’s too short” .
….. I better get started.
Watching the inspirational video (previously posted) featuring Will Smith is quite motivating. I find myself agreeing with his statments, thinking; “I don’t need a Plan B”, “All I have to do is Focus” and ” I really can create a great life” but then I log off youtube, look at my surroundings and think; ” Well it’s okay for Will Smith he’s a Hollywood Movie star with a huge mansion, lots of money and all the trappings of the high life – sure he can say that” and I do nothing! I take No action and watch Will Smith “Have a great time with his life”. I don’t watch the video for another couple of months. I revisit The mind guru’s channel ( The maker of the video) some months later and he has anticipated this negative thought pattern and responds with;
On closer inspection, I realise that I have bought in to my negative thinking once more! I logged off youtube and with it the idea of beginning to start changing for the better…
So, I have decided to take action by starting this page, an online journal, if you like, to begin studying, researching and putting into practice positive ideas that can lead to a great life.. Does this way of thinking really work? Well, it did for Will Smith as he explains in a honest interview. Things were not always postive for Smith, it seems that it was these very ideas that got him out of crippling debts, a negative mind set and gave him a clear focus on becoming a Hollywood Movie star. He even wrote down exactly what type of films he wanted to make while living in a small apartment in LA and paying off his debts over 3 years with 70% of his salary; He was determine not to fail and challenged his fears, as he explains;
Impressive results! Let’s start changing for the better…..
I thought I would save the title that Word Press first gave to me as a new blogger; “Hello World!” it reads. At first glance it’s a title that makes me cringe. The idea of telling the world that I have decided to write a blog seems alittle self – important however, on closer inspection, this is exactly the statement I would like to become comfortable with and my exact reason for creating this blog. You see, I WOULD like to open up my arms and say “Hello” to the world, embrace it, run along sunkiss beaches, achieve my dreams, live a truly happy, prosperous and fullfiling life but somehow there’s a block at the moment. The Block comes in the form of a little thought ( in the sound of my own voice by the way!!) that says “That’s never going to happen”, “Stop dreaming”, “Get real”, “Stay where you are”, “There’s no point changing”, “It will never happen” and Then a few months ago I saw this;
This inspiring video got me thinking; Will smith is a successful man and opens this video with the statement; “I have a great time with my life and.. I want to share it” , “I love Living” and the video continues that he wants to “represent an idea”, “That you really can make what you want”. Smith goes on to say that the first step is that ” YOU have to believe it” and with focus, study, commitment to challenging fears and daily work you too can have a great life and live your dreams.
So what I want to find out is this; Is it really possible to start living a great life? Will studying, researching and practicing these ideas (and others like them) shift the block I am experiencing, conquer the negative thinking? and finally start my life changing for the better?
