2020 is coming and everyone’s talking about it, so I thought why not? So this is gonna be my last blog post for 2019, and it’s about how to change your life in a year.
Myself, I felt stuck for quite a few years, hoping my situation would change while doing the same thing over and over again. I hated my job, I hated where I lived, I was constantly worried about money and so many other things. And I can’t believe it, but it all changed within a year and is progressing and improving since. So I want to share some of the things that have helped me come out of that rut and move my life in a direction I’m excited about.
Change Your Life In One Year
There’s nothing special about 2020, it’s gonna come and go like all other years. Unless you remind yourself of this: The time is anyway going to pass. So why not use it? Why not squeeze the most out of that year? No matter what year it is, remember that your clock was started the day you were born and as long as it’s still ticking you’ve got the chance to do everything you wanted to do.
1. Believe You Can
Believe you can change and you can get better at anything you want. There’s a very famous quote by Jim Rohn and it says this: “For things to change, you have to change”. And that is so true. I changed so many things in my life over the last 5 years and that process changed me too. I’m not quite the same. My habits are not the same, my mindset is not the same. I couldn’t have made any of the changes I did if I was exactly the same. I’m still a good person, but I believe I’m a better one now. Change happens whether you want it or not, that’s life, that’s gravity. So make that change something you want. Believe that you can become that somebody you like even more than the person you are right now.
2. Give Yourself Space And Time
Allow yourself time and space to think and dream for a few minutes.
Imagine yourself a year from now…What do you want to be able to do in a year that you can’t do right now? What is the thing that makes you somewhat insecure? What change will have the biggest impact on your life? On your health? Or on your happiness? Maybe you need to develop a certain skill? Or a set of skills? Why? How would you feel after those changes? What bigger things will they enable you to do?
For example for me, one of those things right now is driving. Something that comes so natural to billions of people around the world, scares the crap out of me and is stopping me from doing so many fun activities. It’s one of the things I overthink a lot and makes me insecure. It’s the one thing I want to change because it will give me the freedom to go wherever I want, visit places I never can reach with public transportation or with my feet, it will save me time and I will just take it off my mind (which is honestly the biggest benefit in my opinion).
Do this with 4-5 things you want to change and this will become a truly life-changing year. For example for the next year: I want to learn a new language, take dance and swimming lessons and learn how to play an instrument. 4 years ago on that list was also starting this blog and it has changed my life in so many ways.
A few thoughts on traveling. Like many people, I always thought traveling is so great and I do think that it can give you a new fresh perspective. It definitely creates memories. But if your life needs change, I don’t feel like travel is the only answer. You don’t change your life by going away from it for 2 months and then coming back. You’ll be back facing the same problems and getting stressed. You can take weekend trips to rejuvenate for sure. But you make a change by changing the things you do consistently. And it’s not easy – for some people more than others. Whether you move away from your environment or not, you can still do something. Travel is great, but there’s definitely a time to do it.
3. Make a decision.
Once you know what you’d like to change, decide that you’re gonna make it happen. That you’ll give it a fair chance. You need to make a firm decision. Schedule and be disciplined about the things you want to achieve.
4. Plan it out.
You don’t have to it all at once, but this task, this thing needs to be on your schedule at least once a week. Then start working on that plan and track your progress weekly, monthly, quarterly. Week after week, when you see you’ve made a change you’ll stay motivated. And you’ll notice that, hey, you’re doing something. You’re changing something. You’re not just dreaming about it, you’re getting closer.
5. Do The Unexpected
This is where the change really happens. This is where you get to know yourself on a whole new level. Where you get to surprise yourself and find out that maybe, you’ll be okay when you talk to others. Maybe it’s easy for you to make friends. And maybe you do like to eat salads. Maybe exercise ain’t that bad after all. Sometimes we get very set in our ways. Good or bad, we do have our routines, habits, opinions, and beliefs about the world and about ourselves. And it’s hard to let those go. It’s hard to break that pattern. But those beliefs are usually subjective, they might actually not be the truth. Give yourself the benefit of a doubt and try things you never expected to like or to be good at. Give them a chance.
Those things are different than the ones you identified previously. They’re not planned. They’re things you know you have to do, but don’t actually want to do and would rather hide. For example, talking to strangers – you can change the way you respond. Going to a yoga class because a friend asked you when you think yoga is boring. Or to a party when you want to eat cookies on the couch and watch Netflix. Surprise yourself!
These things might feel scary and uncomfortable but accept it. That’s how you gain experience. Life will be so much more interesting and fun when you try new things, even if they don’t stick. You’ll create new memories, opportunities and will develop confidence and self-trust. That’s a great thing to have when you want a change.
6. Enjoy life as it comes.
Lastly, this is something I’d definitely tell my past 3-years-ago self. Make it a point to enjoy life. It’s all gonna be good, but be present and remember to savor the moments along the way, spend quality time with the people that matter to you and find time to be with yourself as well.
Now I’m ready to do my reflections for 2019, I might even do it for the whole decade, but it’s a decade, so a lot has changed. I mean how much have you changed between 12 and 22? Not that I’m 22 anymore, but you get what I mean. A lot changes in a decade. So I’ll do that, set my goals for the year and then take some time off. I hope you enjoyed this post and found it helpful, we’ll talk again next year!
