We are in the final 60. Sixty days left in 2016. There are 1440 hours remaining in this year in which to push past what you've been doing in favor of what you most want to do. Peoplehood has so many rules to live by. We have societal rules that we need to honor, we have personal values that we try to uphold, we have various business and organizational rules that we adhere to, and then we have that unique bunch of rules that define our personal selves. This individual mindset rulebook is perhaps the most powerful of all because this is the rulebook over which we actually have the most control.
Yes, we are each the authors of our own mindset rulebooks. Just like an actual published best seller, our individual books can be relevant at one point in time and irrelevant and outdated at another. Is it time for a new and updated version of this bible you live by and if so, what will it take to refresh the copy so that it best reflects who you are today...in "real time?" Is there a chapter of your mindset rulebook that you have been meaning to add or rewrite but you have just not gotten to it yet? Understandable, since status quo is so comfortably enticing. Until this punch list of regulations that you live your life by has you not living your life, but simply going through the daily motions. What's next?
Change the playbook and the plays change.
It sounds simple. You assume that you will just do things differently tomorrow. You will change something. Except, you don't. The reason why? You need to give yourself permission to change. In order for change to not only take place but also become a daily habit in your life, you need to give yourself permission to break the old personal mindset rules in favor of an update and a re-write. Breaking the old mindset blocks allows you to free yourself of what is not working in your life in favor of trying something else that may work. Letting go of one way of thinking allows you to welcome in a new belief.
Time to shatter the glass and break those rules? If so, grab a piece of paper and a pencil and make yourself a permission slip. At the top of the page write old rules on one side and new rules on the other side. For every old mindset rule and every fear that is holding you hostage from doing things differently there needs to be a partnership with a new rule that will have you taking an action step toward the process of change. This list becomes not only your permission slip and guide; it is also a positive reminder to step out of your comfort zone.
Here is an example:
Old Rule:
I am good at being an accountant, lawyer, teacher, or stay-at-home-mom. This is all that I know how to do.
New Rule:
I am good at dozens of things. I really enjoy X, Y & Z. Is there a way to get more X, Y & Z into my life? Can I start an X, Y & Z business?
Manifest A Take Action Now List!
- Research new ways to implement X, Y, & Z into your life
- Sign up for a class, read a book, talk to people doing what you want to do
- Believe that you can
- Rewrite the story of this rule by rewriting the ending...what do you want to happen and how can you step into that happening...
- Ask yourself...what can I do now...
- Now try that thing you can do...then try something else
- Examine what is working and what is not
- Fine-tune where you can practice this new rule
- Incorporate into your life as a habit
The trick to breaking your personal rules is that there is no trick. It takes commitment and work. It takes making a choice. A choice to friend the fear that is dictating your old mindset rules and to embrace the experiment that frees you to rewrite your new set of rules and habits. Begin. You have a 60-day jump on the new year! Wishing you 1440 hours filled with connecting to the most accurate reflection of who you are today!
Reinvent. Refresh. ReYOU!
