How to move in, live in your new life and make your changes last.
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"Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift, that is why they call it the present." - Unknown
We have been exploring making changes using the metaphor of planning and creating a new renovation on our home. This is the sixth part to our Mid-life Makeover series.
We are exploring the importance of embracing change and new beginnings as a new way of living and setting ourselves up to ensure our changes last.
This quote or saying above reminds us to not dwell in the past and how we used to be. Our past doesn't define us nor does it prevent us from making changes and creating our new life.
As we journey through life, we often encounter seasons of change and new beginnings.
Sometimes it can be easy to make the change, embrace the new beginnings and keep moving forward. Other times the change may last for a short time and then we slide back to our old ways.
This is both an exhilarating and challenging time, just like moving back into and living in a newly renovated home and embracing the transitions to a new way of living.
At this point we may be tempted to bring back some of our familiar things into our new environment.
This is where you need to be especially careful what you are allowing back into your new cleared and renovated space.
Midlife Makeover: Making Changes Last - Living In Your New Life
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Creating an Environment for Lasting Change
Change is an inevitable part of life. It can be intimidating, especially when it involves stepping into the unknown and leaving behind familiar routines and comforts.
In your newly renovated home, it’s harder to slip back to the old ways, because you intentionally created an environment that supports your vision. You added in new features, upgraded areas, rearranged things based around the goals and vision you had for your renovation.
It is very likely you won’t live the same way in your newly renovated house that you did the old one. As you move back in, you are more likely to let go of the things that no longer serve you or fit in your new space.
In your own life this phase can be a little different which is why I am stepping you through this, because you don't have a newly renovated home to move into and so it's easier to get off track and fall back into old ways of thinking and doing things.
Think back to when you created your blueprint and vision for your new life. Remember the reasons you have for making these changes.
Reconnecting to your vision for your new life and why it is important to you will help you to stay focused and on track. Unlike a newly renovated home, you don't have constant reminders of your vision, so we have to find ways to recreate this in your life.
Now is not the time to slip back to what you were putting up with in the past – you've already decided you want something new and different. Now is the time to make sure that happens.
It’s time to live in the now with your eye on the future.
The best way to keep you on track is to ensure that your new environment truly supports the changes you have committed to for your new life going forward and make it hard for you to slip back to your old ways.
By embracing the new you will be creating exciting changes and unlocking new opportunities. This is a time for you to breathe new life every aspect of your life – a clean slate, a new drawing board to embrace change and revitalise and invigorate your life.
There are two parts to this creating a supportive environment: your physical environment and your daily environment.
"You can't go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending."
~ C.S. Lewis ~
Part 1: Setting Up Your Environment For Lasting Success & Change
Here are six actions to set your environment up to support your vision and future success.
1. Reconnect With Your Goals and Vision
Begin by reconnecting with and clarifying your goals, vision and intentions.
Whether it's fostering better health outcomes, improving your financial situation, enhancing creativity, or nurturing relationships, understanding and connecting with your vision and objectives is crucial.
This could be a great time to create a vision board - so you see it every day!
2. Assess Your Physical Space
Now it’s time to take a close look at your physical environment – your home, workspace, and other areas where you spend time.
- Do your spaces align with your goals?
- Do they support you going forward?
- Are there things in your environment that support your old ways?
Identify any elements that might hinder your progress and find opportunities to optimise your space so that you are ready to make your new life happen easily.
3. Clear out What Doesn’t Serve You
Just as we looked at decluttering rooms before renovating, declutter your surroundings now.
Eliminate items that no longer serve you and create space for positive change.
Physical clutter can lead to mental clutter, slowing or even preventing progress in your journey.
4. Create Your Environment To Support You
Design your environment to help make your goals easy to reach.
For instance, if you are focusing on healthy eating:
- Organise your kitchen to make nutritious options easily accessible.
- Get the juicer and blender out and leave on the countertop - and put the toaster away!
- Make space in the refrigerator for more fresh fruits and vegetables.
If personal growth is your aim:
- create a quiet corner for reading, meditation, or reflection.
If creating new exercise habits is your goal:
- get your exercise clothes and shoes and put them in an easily accessible space, so that is the first thing you reach for when you get out of bed. I have 2 to 3 days exercise outfits stored in my bathroom!
5. Inspire Yourself With Visual Cues
Incorporate elements that inspire and motivate you. Decorate your space with artwork, quotes, or visuals that resonate with your aspirations.
These reminders will fuel your determination and keep you aligned with your path.
- Maybe you need a daily reminder of your intention – make it into a framed quote and hang it at eye-level for when you swing your legs out of bed – it’s there in front of you.
- Add notes, instructions or affirmations to your mirror in your bathroom.
- Put a vision board in a place you will see it every day.
6. Schedule a Monthly or Quarterly Check-in
Schedule a periodic assessment of your physical environment.
- Have you become blinded by familiarity?
- Do you need to change things up?
- Do you need new things in new places to rekindle your drive?
Regular adjustments ensure your space continually aligns with your evolving goals.
Part 2: Shaping Your Daily Routine for Lasting Change
Setting up your Day to Day For Lasting Success
The focus so far has mostly been around the physical environment and in our metaphor the renovation of the home. Now it’s time to look at how you are going to live within your new environment to achieve your vision.
Just as the foundation of a home supports its structure, your daily routine forms the foundation of your transformed life. Shaping your day-to-day activities to align with your goals can build lasting change. Let's delve into how to set up your daily routine to support your newfound vision and goals.
1. Morning Mindset
Start your day with intention.
Dedicate the first moments to mindfulness, meditation, or journaling.
Set yourself up in a way that sets you moving forward and in alignment with your goals and intention for the day.
2. Create Breaks and Check-points In Your Day
Sometimes we throw in the towel too early on our changes, because we believe that we have to be a certain way.
Integrate breaks and mini-checkpoints into your day to stop and check in on your progress towards your daily goals and intention.
AND, be flexible. If you get to a checkpoint and realise that you didn’t exercise for 30 minutes first thing – instead of being upset, or shaming yourself, or feeling guilty – turn it around as an opportunity to find another way to make yourself feel good.
Perhaps you don’t have 30 minute block where you can exercise – instead get creative.
- Could you find 3 x 10 minute breaks where you could just go for a 10 minute walk?
- Or do a 5 minute dance party on the hour to freshen up your body and mind.
There are more ways to achieve your goals and instead of throwing in the towel for that day. Get into the habit of forgiving yourself and finding a new way to make yourself feel good and feel progress.
If you find that you consistently aren’t doing something you planned – this is a great time to go back and check-in.
- Remember your vision and reconnect with it.
- Check your environment and see if there are some tweaks you can make and
- Finally look for what is really holding you back and if you need to find another way that you will be able to stick to.
3. Sneaky Ritual Stacking
If you already do something regularly at a particular time or on a particular trigger – what could you add to it to help you get closer to your vision?
An example is when you clean your teeth in the morning, evening or after eating. You are doing it anyway!
It’s much easier to stack habits onto something you already do. Just do one new thing until it is a part of your habit – later you can add another.
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4. Block Your Time and Schedule It In Your Calendar or Diary
Whether your new vision and goals involve work-related changes or not using your calendar and diary to schedule and block time for certain things really creates focus and momentum. Allocating focused blocks of time for tasks that contribute to your goals help you to have a sense of anticipation, expectation and can also help you to limit distractions.
5. Reflective Evening Routine
Ending your day with a reflection – a check-in. How was your day? Did you achieve what you set out to achieve? What was great about your day? Answer this first and don’t even think about asking the next question until you have at least 5 things that were great about your day. What is one thing (and only one) that you will do to set yourself up for an even better tomorrow?
This is a time to realign your mindset and intentions ready for the following day.
6. Make Restful Sleep a Priority
Sleep is an often-overlooked area that has a huge effect on our overall mood, wellbeing and general health.
Create your sleep routine so that it supports your goals.
Create a calming bedtime ritual that encourages restful sleep.
A well-rested mind is more equipped to embrace change.
Your physical environment and daily routine are essential tools for supporting your transformative journey. By intentionally crafting your surroundings and activities, you are enhancing your ability to sustain the changes you've embraced.
Change is inevitable which means we need to find all the ways we can to embrace it so we can keep moving forward. Adopting a forward-looking perspective and embracing the possibilities that new beginnings can bring.
"Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future."
~ John F. Kennedy ~
Envision & Experience Your Future
Ready to embrace change, navigate transitions, and embark on new beginnings? Join my FREE 7 Day Envision & Experience Your Future Class. Over the course of seven days, you will receive transformative emails that will guide you in envisioning and stepping into your future with confidence and purpose. Delivered straight to your inbox, this class provides actionable steps and strategies to help you move forward.
Key Takeaways: Making Changes Last - Living In Your New Life
Living in your new life and making sure that your changes last, can at times be challenging, even with the best of intentions.
Here are some issues that midlife women face when trying to follow a path to create and navigate change without a guide or coach to help them keep on track.
- Overwhelm and Uncertainty
- Fear of the Unknown
- Lack of Support
- Self-doubt and Negative Self-talk
- Maintaining Momentum
How do I know these are the issues? Because this is exactly what I felt in my early 50s and I spent a lot of time and money searching for the path.
If any or all of these areas resonate with you, reach out for a chat to discover what is possible for you and some strategies to overcome these.
"Life is change, growth is optional. Choose wisely." - Karen Kaiser Clark
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Join us next time on the Midlife Makeover Series for the final part to this series where we will be exploring the lessons we have learnt along the way and how to keep moving forward.
Until then,
LIVE LOVE THRIVE
Angela
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