It’s three weeks into the new year and many of us have already gotten lost.
We’ve lost our desire for the thing we wanted so badly to change.
That excitement we had has diminished.
Inspiration has disappeared.
Reality has set in.
We want to change, to be better, to grow, but it’s SO much easier to stay the same.
How do we keep moving forward when our feet feel glued to the ground?
How do we ensure that we’re at a different, better place next year at this same time?
How do we stop setting the same goal year after year?
What if we took advantage of our personal GPS?
PERSONAL GPS
Do you remember driving places before you had GPS in your car, or the Global Positioning System that can help you navigate to any place you want to go?
I am fortunate to have a professional driver for a father, so I would always turn to him for directions if I needed to get somewhere I’ve never been before. He always knew the way, including the shortest route, the roads to avoid, and any construction that could get in my way. I took multiple notes and had it next to me when driving, trying to read my chicken scratch as I navigated my way.
But then one day I had GPS and driving was never the same! I could go anywhere at anytime, even places my dad had never been and the directions would appear in front of me with the click of a few buttons. It was incredible!
So how can we use the concept of GPS in our own lives to reach any destination?
Just like with the GPS in your car, there are three steps to using your personal GPS.
STEP 1: KNOW WHERE YOU ARE
Before you can get anywhere using GPS, you have to plug in your starting location.
The same is true in life.
You want to identify your current result in a particular area of your life. Knowing where you are also means understanding how you got there.
This is where I have to remind you that most problems in the world are thought problems.
The results you have in your life, the actions you took to get those results, the feelings you felt that drove you to take those actions – they all came from a thought.
So if you want to know why you have a certain result in your life, look no further than your thoughts.
If you want to know why you have a certain result in your life, look no further than your thoughts.
mindful doc mom
Step one involves looking objectively (NOT emotionally or judgmentally) at your current result in any area of your life and examining the thoughts you have that create this result.
NOW you know where you are and why.
STEP 2: KNOW WHERE YOU’RE GOING
Now that you know where you are, you need to know where you are going.
What result do you want to create?
Is it to exercise a certain number of days a week?
Is it to lose a certain number of pounds?
Is it to stop drinking alcohol?
Is it to get more sleep?
Is it to keep work at work and be present with your family?
Is it to have conversations with your loved ones without losing your temper?
Is it to have more intimacy?
Is it to read a certain number of books a year or maybe even write a book?
Whatever it is, you want to clarify your goal and write it down. Be specific.
Now back to those thoughts again.
Once you have defined your goal, you want to define the thinking you need in order to generate the feeling and actions that will lead to this goal.
Imagine the person who already reached this goal.
Imagine YOU in the future.
What are you thinking?
What are you feeling?
What are you doing?
You are certainly not there yet, or you would already have this goal.
But NOW you understand where you are going.
STEP 3: START MOVING
Once you know where you are and where you’re going, you can press the START button on the GPS and now YOU have to take your foot off the brake.
The car will not move itself (at least mine won’t yet, maybe one day …)
So how can we do this in life?
Just pick the next best thought. We call this a “ladder thought”.
Imagine a ladder with your current thinking on the bottom rung and your thoughts having reached your goal on the top rung.
There are many rungs leading higher and higher on the ladder towards that goal.
You don’t have to jump to the top of the ladder. If you do, you will probably fall.
But you can slowly, steadily climb up.
What thought is just slightly better than the one you have now, but is still believable and generates a feeling that is slightly closer to the feeling your future self has standing on the top rung?
Choose that thought today instead.
Your car is now moving in the right direction.
There is no bad thought.
There are thoughts that will get you closer to your destination and ones that will take you further away.
You will know based on how you feel.
Some thoughts bring you closer to your destination and other thoughts take your further away. You will know based on how you FEEL.
mindful doc mom
Your feelings are the voice that calls out from your GPS telling you what to do and which way to go.
They warn you that you have a turn coming up ahead.
They warn you how far you still have to go.
And if you make a mistake and go in the wrong direction, don’t worry.
Your feelings will call out, “recalculating”. You can just reposition your thoughts once again and climb up the next rung.
If you need help navigating, I’m your GPS guide and can help you reach your goals.
Schedule a free 45 minute call with me by clicking on my calendar link below.
