Living by Design

As human beings, we are often pushed by what we perceive as our issues. Equally important, we are also pulled forward by our dreams, visions and inspirations. Often, we tend to focus on our issues due to their pressure, and don't invest in the process of creation.

Without asking the question: "What do I really want?"; and, without taking the time to reflect and discover what is true for us, we are likely to repeat childhood patterns of living someone else's plan for us. This pattern then gets transferred into the work environment, where we rely on the business to dictate the plan for our life.

The past doesn't have to equal the future. You can design the future you want now. If you can dream it you can create it.

Sit down and ask yourself, "How do I really want my life to be?" Encourage that part of you that holds the dreams. Give it the freedom to express. I suggest writing down what comes forward.

Allow yourself freedom of expression, with no constraints. In this initial stage we are focusing on the vision, the what, not the how.

Review the different aspects of your life; job, financial, recreation, spiritual, education, home environment, family, community, etc. Ask yourself, "Are there any areas I would like to improve?" Notice any inner response, and if the answer is yes, discover for yourself, what it is you would prefer.

One by one, write down a present tense description of you doing, being, living, that area of your life the way you prefer it to be.

Be specific. Little to nothing happens when you generalize. If you write down, "I am earning more money," you may find at the end of next year you earned one more dollar than you did this year. Write down exactly what you want. "I am doubling my income." This is clear and specific.

Write it out as if you were sending someone to the store to pick it up for you. Spell it out, be clear, and state it simply.

If I asked someone to get me a loaf of bread, they might return with a loaf of Wonder Bread. I would choose to throw it out because I wanted Ezekiel Sprouted Grain Bread, with sesame seeds;the one in the green package. It's in the freezer section.

What are your conditions of satisfaction? What will make you purrrrr? Write it down. Make sure it represents your most expanded self.

Look at your list regularly. Tell yourself, "This is what I want and it is coming to me."

Holding a vision is just part of the creative process. Action is key. Ask yourself, what is one thing I can do today to move me closer to my dreams and then do it.

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"Nothing happens unless first a dream."
~ Carl Sandburg ~

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