It’s time to get honest about what you want – not what you think you are supposed to want. Not what other people want for you, or for themselves, for that matter. Not what society says you should want. Not what your parents / spouse / friends / workmates / newspapers / magazines / TV /movies say that you should want. This is about you. Just you.
Last week I set you an exercise to purge all that discontent you’ve been feeling onto paper. Why? Because a “Don’t want” list is the easiest way to get started on a “Do want” list. (This is an important step, so if you missed it, revisit the blog Just pick something already!)
We tend to have a lot more clarity about the things we aren’t happy with in our lives. So, this next step is about applying that same level of clarity to the things we do want for our lives.
Take out that list you wrote last week and next to each item, write down an opposite statement.
For example,
“I don’t want a partner who sits around watching TV” becomes “I want a partner who enjoys going to the theatre with me.”
“I don’t want to work 12 hours a day” becomes “I want to set my own working hours”.
“I don’t want to feel tired anymore” becomes “I want to feel full of energy from the moment I wake up in the morning”.
The first time I did this exercise, I had written about 7 pages worth of “Don’t wants” and “Do wants” so, if you’ve found that your list is a long as a novel, that’s absolutely fine. This is about getting very specific and very detailed about the areas of discontent in your life and what the opposite of that discontent looks like.
I believe that the more statements you have, the better. Go for it.
Next step? Putting it all together to create a blueprint for living your true life.
