How to Live the Life You Dream Of

How often do you say things to yourself like “but I could never do that” or “that could never happen”? Do you make a habit of talking yourself out of things you dream of? If so, turning that around into a positive statement about reaching your goals is the first step toward making your life what you want it to be. The tips below can also help you achieve this.

From Abstract to Concrete

Some people know exactly what they want. They want to retire as a multi-millionaire at 40 and spend the rest of their life traveling the world, or they want to become a nurse and help people, or they want to set fitness goals to improve their health, or they want to become a great actor or politician. Many other people have much more abstract ideas about what they want. Sometimes it is as vague as simply wanting to be happy. If this is the case, your first step will be to try to identify what your dream is. This might mean spending some time journaling, talking to close friends, or seeing a counselor or life coach.

Imagine Possibilities

It can be easy to limit yourself if you aren’t careful. Maybe you’ve decided to pursue your dream of teaching children. You’ve found out that you need to go back to school, but you already barely make ends meet, so how will you ever afford the price of college? When you run up against challenges like this, it’s important to be solution oriented. In this situation, you could look at scholarships to pay for part or even all of your education. 

Of course, there will always be a few situations where you can’t do exactly what you want. No one is going to hire you to play professional football if you’re a 30-year-old couch potato. In that situation, you’ll need to dig a little deeper to figure out what’s behind the urge. Maybe you really want to get in shape, have a career that puts you more in the public eye or coach an amateur sports team.

Keep Your Focus

It can be easy to lose sight of what you’re after, so there are a few things you need to stay focused on. First, let go of the things that you cannot change and/or are out of your control. This is easier said than done, but it can be a waste of time and energy better spent elsewhere. Next, identify what matters most to you and pay attention to that. 

This can mean ignoring what the world around you tells you that you should value and putting your energy toward the people, activities, and things that you love. Finally, strive to make each day like a kind of miniature version of what you want your life to look like. Incorporate the things that matter to you into your days, and if you find that you can’t do this on a regular basis, look at where you need to make changes so that you can.