Comparison is something we all face at one time or another. In the age of social media, we can’t help but notice what everyone else is doing. Even if we are happy where we are at, we constantly find ourselves searching for the next thing. We are always changing and desiring change.

While at times, comparison can cause more harm than good, it can also work in the opposite. Comparing ourselves to others sometimes, can show us that what is available to them is also available to us. So let’s look at how you can talk this sense of longing for the things that aren’t working in your life can be used as inspiration to grow and develop.

It’s time to start creating the things you want.

If you aren’t happy where you are, you need to change something. The one path that will never get you anywhere different is the one we most commonly take (the path of doing nothing at all).

1. Know What’s Stopping You

Stop for a minute and think to yourself about what it is exactly that is stopping you from getting what you want.

What are your limitations?

It may seem like your job, your living situation, your relationships, or your financescan make it hard for you to make drastic changes in your life. However, beyond all of that… often it is ourselves, and our own beliefs that serve as our biggest limitation.

Self-doubt can be detrimental to our growth. Fear can be crippling, making us unable or unwilling to pursue unfamiliar and new opportunities because we want to avoid failure, or judgement, or some other limitation that we have created.

So what are these limitations?
What are you telling yourself?
And further to that, which one of these are within your control to change?

While some situations we cannot change, most circumstance have elements that we can control or adjust. We may not be able to change what has happened, but we can decide to move forward despite it all and make the best or alter whatever is still in our control.

Feeling bad is natural, feel whatever you need, but we can’t allow these circumstances to keep you stuck. Use the dark times to learn and always fall forward onto the next best thing.

2. Re-Evaluate Your Circumstances

If you are in a situation that is making you unhappy or unsatisfied, re-evaluate how you got there.

Whatever it is that is making you uncomfortable, keeping you stuck, I want you to think about the elements and decisions that got you there.

Did you make a decision to pursue one thing in order to avoid something else?
Did you make your decision because other options were overlooked?

Whatever it is, you need to look at what isn’t working and what it is that you have been avoiding & connect with what is going to make you happy.

If you are unsure of where it is you need to start making changes, ask someone. Being curious is the first step in personal growth.

Curiousity is the desire to understand and to try and push the envelope and IT is what drives change. IT is what will help you gain new perspectives and allow you to take away as many important lessons as possible that you can apply in your own life and create the change you desire. Which will in turn require you to do tip #3…

3. Get Uncomfortable

I can guarantee you that you won’t get anywhere new by practicing the same old strategies. Remember, nothing changes if nothing changes. If you’re always going to the same places, working the same job, interacting with the same people, but expecting things to change or improve – it’s not a realistic outlook on your situation.

If you don’t like something in your life, change it. Results will not change if you do not alter the actions creating them.

You are not only your largest limitation, you are also the only one who can do anything about changing it.

Finding success is about making the decision to do something. Once you realize that the safest thing you can do actually feels the most risky, the sky is the limit.

I encourage you to have the courage to challenge the status quo, defy limitations, find your purpose, and serve it.

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Have you ever lacked motivation, focus, or the desire to try new things? Maybe you feel sad and the things that used to bring you joy just aren’t doing it anymore… and you’re left wondering “Where do I go from here?”

You feel burnt out, don’t know what to do, and quite frankly you don’t feel like doing anything at all.

Yeah. Same.

In this post I will share some tips from personal experience that I’ve used to work through pulling myself out of a rut, in hopes of helping you to do the same.

1. Connect with Inspiring People

It’s important to surround yourself with people who life your spirits. Often when we find ourselves in a rut, our inclination is to retreat. We all are guilty of this.

However, the reality is that meaningful relationships make us happier, healthier, and more productive. That’s why it’s so great to keep a diverse group of connections; each having a different form of motivation to offer.

If you find yourself in a rut, seek out the connections and conversations that will inspire you.

2. Know It’s Okay to Take a Break

As adults, there is a tendency to always be “doing”. We put too much on plate, we expect too much of ourselves, and often we find ourselves constantly feeling behind, burnt out and lacking motivation.

It’s time to be intentional. Just like we need cycles of work and sleep every day and night, on a larger time scale the same principle applies.

We need periods of work and intensity and periods of rest; our lives rely on this cycle; it’s time to honour that.

3. Explore New Interests

The reality is that no one has innate passions. However, there is a common misconception that people who do great things, were born knowing what their “thing” was.

When in fact this belief can be very dangerous. When we don’t know or understand our passion, it can illicit a lot of guilt and thoughts like:

“Well, why don’t I have that?”
“What am I even good at?”
“How come they love their job and I hate mine?”
“This is why I am so stuck”

In reality, passions comes from trying many different things. Each of us possesses a ton of small interests that we can choose to explore, or not.

Sometimes these interests turn into something, and sometimes not. The best way to pull yourself out of a rut is to follow those threads of interest & see what opportunities unfold.

Challenge yourself, challenge your brain and learn something new along the way.

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Rejection sucks, plain and simple, but it certainly doesn’t have to be as difficult as we often make it out to be.

They way in which we respond to rejection can be pivotal in our lives.

Will you allow rejection to hold you back, or will you utilize the chance to grow stronger, more resilient, and better prepared the next time?

Let’s take a look and hop right into 3 tips to help you get past rejection.

1. Think Big Picture

How do you want to live your life? Have you ever thought about that?

Quite simply, would you rather:

1. Risk being rejected again? OR…
2. Live the rest of your life trying to shelter yourself from future rejection?

The thought of never trying at all, never growing, never learning something new about yourself or about how the real world works seems scary as heck to me.

It’s through rejection we grow resilience, and it’s through rejection that we learn what’s not working so that we can get closer to this better, more improved version of ourself.

 2. Reframe the Rejection

Rejection is not about you, remember that. In fact, it happens to literally everyone at some point or another.

While our default instinct is to slip into the “I’m so stupid”/“I’m not good enough” mentality. You need to recognize that approaching your defeat with this attitude is only going to hold you back.

Ultimately, it comes down to your decision to decide that this person, this job, this situation was just not right for right now, but that doesn’t mean it will dictate your entire future.

It’s important in these times, to reaffirm the efforts you have made and remember, “I pushed myself to my limits”. By exercising this compassion for yourself you can begin to see the new possibilities provided by this misfortune

Not getting the job you wanted, or being rejected by the one you ‘love’ does not discredit who you are as a person or the skills and attributes you have to offer the world. A single case of rejection (or even multiple) is not indicative of the end. It is not the end.

Remember, one incident or individual is not reflective of all that you have and all that you are.

It’s simply just a single piece of the puzzle.

So…

 3. Seek the Learning Opportunity

Rejection can serve as a humbling experience because it reminds you that you don’t know or have everything.

Every rejection from a partner, job, or friendship is a mirror of what we needed at that point in our life and learned to let go of.

These experiences are the reasons we are where who we are. We need to celebrate the journey, scars and all.

Be sure to give thanks and be grateful for the wounds from which we will heal. If we learned something from our rejection, then it was not a waste; with the right mindset, rejection can serve as an opportunity for motivation to do and be better.

Resilience is a learned skill. Whether you learn about areas in your life that need improvement, or you simply recognize that being turned down isn’t awful as you imagined, rejection can be a good teacher.

Use rejection as an opportunity to move forward with more wisdom and appreciate what it has given you along the way.

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Self-care. It’s something we probably all need help with. With the day to day chaos and stress of life, it seems as though putting ourselves on the back-burner is a natural response, right?

For some people, the simple thought of adding self-care into a daily regimen can seem inconvenient or intimidating. Thoughts like: “I don’t have time for that,” or “I have too many other things to do” start to infiltrate your mind. Which is ironic really… because in reality, avoiding self-care is going to end costing more in the long run.

In fact, repeatedly putting the needs of others before our own can can lead to stress and resentment and prevent us from being our best selves. So let’s talk about why now is a more important time than ever to prioritize yourself and practice self-care.

I will show you how.

1. Be More Mindful

Focusing on the present — without judging how we feel and what we think or what we have to do — can be both a liberating and healthy practice. This is known as mindfulness, and it has become ever-more-mainstream in recent years, right?

Studies show that getting in tune with ourselves through mindfulness improves well-being and brings down stress. Mindfulness also helps us see ourselves in a truer light.

This practice allows us to reflect and ask:

• What am I doing well?
• Where could I improve?

We call this self-regulation. We can’t know that something is off for us if we don’t know what our normal really is in the first place.

Mindfulness can in turn help you to keep your mind from wandering, stressing, and ultimately negatively impacting your emotional health. So, be gentle with yourself, but remain aware.

Express gratitude when you can – for things beyond you, but most importantly for things within; things you have done and things that you have.

This again will bring back that level of awareness to centre, and allow to worry less about what’s going on out there so you can focus within.

2. Unplug

These days, it feels like everyone’s glued to a phone, laptop, or both at the same time.

While social media has its benefits, it can be quite misleading. Most often people only report on their success, and so it can be hard when you’re comparing your entire life to everyone’s highlight reels. Take the time to break away from social media, and allow yourself to focus on the beauty of the moment.

Deliberately taking a break from social media, e-mail, and so on can help us recharge and give our brain the downtime it needs to help us out of the comparison trap.

Perhaps for you this looks like one day a week, or an hour before bed every night – find what works for you.

This could also look like getting outside more. Ditching the comfort of your home is a great way to improve both your mental and physical health. In fact, research shows that simply being outside can improve your overall health.

3. Be Kind to Yourself

The most important part of all this is being kind to yourself. Don’t punish yourself for forgetting to go on a run or being too busy to sit down with a book. Self-care isn’t supposed to feel like a huge chore.

It’s more important that these changes are sustainable and nourishing, rather than a chore. So, if you go for a day of self-indulgence, don’t beat yourself up. Just try and do more to really care for yourself the next day. Progress not perfection.

Remember, by being your best self you’re able to share those beautiful feelings with those around you. Search for the good and watch the positivity grow.

Most importantly, remember that self-care isn’t a one time thing.

It’s the constant repetition of many tiny habits, which together help you to make sure you’re at your optimum—emotionally, physically, and mentally.

The best way to do this is to regularly implement tiny self-care habits every day; showing a little attention for your own body, mind, and soul.

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Have you ever had to make a big change in your life? Like the kind that left you shaking with fear? Same.

I think a lot of us think about starting new chapters in our life as giving up or letting go of the past, and that can make it really difficult to pull the trigger; the job, the habit, the relationship, the pass time, whatever it is.

You can be grateful for the experience you had, the fun you had with it, but understand that it’s just not for you anymore. You can now be happy to not be doing those things anymore, but it doesn’t discount or discredit the experience or fun you had in the past.

That part of your life is now over, you can be glad to have had it, but you can also be complete with it.

I want you to look at your life. Instead of looking at these things you are trying to move on from as giving up in the present, as if it will be a missing part of you or your life, reframe it as something you are done doing.

>> I am done with being lazy and never exercising

>> I am done with binge drinking alcohol 

>> I am done with watching the news

>> I am done with toxic relationships or friendships

It’s not a loss if you can look at it in a way that is fulfilled. You aren’t taking something away you are just completing something, and this subtle shift can make a huge impact.

You had the experience, now you’ve been there and done that. You’re done.

So let’s get into exactly how to do just that.

1. View the Experience as a Journey

At some point or another we have all experienced moments in our life where thought things weren’t going to be okay. Whether we felt super stuck, we had our heart broken, or we experienced loss… in the moment it felt like our world was ending, right?

If you can call to mind that moment, you might be thinking now, that it feels like that struggle was really just a lesson, right?

The more we can look at these things in our life that we are trying to move through as a fluid experience versus a fixed problem, we can really start to put things into perspective. 

Letting go or moving on or away from a person or habit or experience is not the end of our story, it’s just a part of a story that served us in some way, teaching us a lesson or helping us to evolve and adapt.

No other person or habit or job or anything can possess our story, WE own our story, YOU own your own story.

And when you let go, you are still whole, still growing, and still evolving.

2. Let Go Of the Fantasy of What Was

We tend to idolize past experiences. Because our brains find comfort in what is familiar… when something is over or we let go of something that was once a part of our life, we tend to breeze over the bad parts of our experience and only remember the good.

Past relationships, terrible jobs of the past, toxic friendships, bad habits.

We stay stuck holding onto these things because we are fixated on this idea that if we hold onto the good, the bad won’t be so bad… even if it’s not serving us.

And when we stay here, it makes it even harder to move on.

Letting go of this fantasy of what was and learning to lean in and really take a hard look at what the reality of the situation is or was can really make you come to terms with why letting go was so important in the first place.

3. Make a list

So, start by brainstorm a list of things you already know and have already done and am complete with. What are you done with?

“I am done with” does not mean “I can never have or do xyz again”

>> Maybe you’re done dating because you are married now

>> Maybe you’re done studying because you have a career path

And then, make a list of the things you want to experience more of.

>> Maybe now that you’re married, you are ready to experience being married and partnership and how that feels.

It’s like replacing the old thing with something new to fill that void and with this you will start to see that you aren’t losing anything at all.

You will see that you have experienced all of these things and now you are done and ready for something new. You won’t need to feel like you’re missing out because you’ve had the experience.

When you change you get to experience both doing and not doing all in one lifetime, and the best part is… You can always go back if you need.

One of the best parts of life is how DIFFERENT life can be, and yet so many of us stay where we are, in this place of everything always being the same, so we can feel safe even when it doesn’t necessarily feel good.

One of the opportunities in life is letting go to be able to experience so many different things & to be able to move in and out of experiences so fluidly.

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Isn’t life funny? Teaching us new lessons every day… In fact, owning a business has taught me a lot.

Lessons about what it’s like to try things and have them work or not work. What it’s like to iterate and try again, and be persistent even when I am drowning in these feeling of self doubt or insecurity.

You heard it first. I don’t always have it together, and that’s OKAY.

Same goes for you reading this, friend.

Life is overwhelming at times, and at times it can be really hard to forget how to be grateful. And so, if you do recognize this feeling and you’re thinking “Wow, my life is hard right now, things did not turn out how I had expected…”

I want you to know that you are not alone and that the universe has bigger plans for you. This post will serve as that same reminder.

Everything is going to be okay – let’s sit back and enjoy the ride as I divulge 2 simple steps that you can take to start appreciating the journey (good or bad) while in pursuit of your biggest goals.

1. Stay in the NOW

In this life, it seems as thought we are always reaching for the next thing. It’s almost as if we are obsessed with this idea of an alternate destination.

The next job. The next relationship. The next achievement.

We forget about where we are and what we are receiving right now, which makes it really hard to be happy in the long term.

In order to appreciate the journey, your happiness can’t be dependent entirely on these external achievements & if it is, you will literally drive yourself crazy constantly chasing the next thing.

When we start new endeavours, we get so excited about what could result because of them. We in turn, build up these big stories & dream endings in our heads… when in reality we don’t know what is going to happen.

Instead, what we need to do is learn to treat every opportunity like it is the opportunity we have been waiting for, seeking the joy, and welcoming every moment as it’s own unique experience.

As yourself, “What would feel really fun today and how can I bring more of it into my day? Even in the seemingly most mundane tasks – how can I make it more enjoyable?”

Perspective is everything.

2. Become an Intentional Creator

It’s important to recognize that your thoughts are creating your reality, and the actions you are taking are impacting these thoughts.

Usually we feel because of the way we are acting. Meaning, we do one thing which makes us feel a certain way. So, if you want to feel better… start by acting the way you want to feel.

This should actually be a very empowering situation for you because it basically means you can change any situation you face, for the better.

Consider this an opportunity for you to assess what is or isn’t working & to create what it is you want.

The goals and achievements you are always striving for are merely just placeholders for emotions that you want to feel (i.e. when I get that promotion I will feel good, when I lose 20lbs I will be more confident, etc), but why not choose to feel those emotions now? Why not choose to act as though every thing you desire, you already have?

Try to keep your focus on what you want to create more of, and know that at any time – including right now – you can start creating any life you want.

You have the right to pivot when you want. You have the right to feel how you want to feel.

So act how you want to feel. Do what feels good. Enjoy it all along the way.

Life is a constant opportunity to learn and evolve. You should never feel shame for where you are at, and if you feel like you have been to fixated on the end goal up until this point… just know that, that is OKAY.

Where you are right now is AMAZING.
You are alive.
You deserve to be able to enjoy the crazy ride of life along the way.

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Let’s talk about the ‘feeling’, the ‘knowing’t or at the very least the gentle inclination that something is off, or awesome, or needs our attention.

We have all experienced it. It’s subtle, but it’s there.

If you’re anyone who has ever had to make a big decision before you are likely familiar with this idea of trusting your gut or letting your intuition guide you, right?

Or maybe you’ve made a bad decision only to later look back and think, “Wow, the signs were there… I should’ve listened to what my intuition was telling me”

Sound familiar? Same.

Our intuition is like this sneaky guide that knows what’s true for us before we know it. It has this ability to acquire knowledge without conscious reasoning, and we don’t even know it is happening.

But what happens is… we get so caught up in day to day life! We are constantly doing things on autopilot that we start to lose touch with our intuition. And so we often end up finding ourselves in places, situations, relationships, or careers that don’t feel quite right and we can’t quite pinpoint how or why.

We lose sight and fall out of touch with our intuition.

Only when we can learn to tune back into its frequency can we find its gentle guidance to follow our soul to a life that feels good.

Intuition exists in all of us, whether we acknowledge it or not. The more we can learn about it, the more we can use it to shape our lives for the better.

Let me share 3 tips on how to get started.

1. Find Inspiration

Your intuition can’t talk to you if you’re not listening. When you start to take notice, good things will happen. Just try it and see.

Start by asking yourself, “What is it that inspires me?”

You see, sometimes life can become so muddled and messy, that it can be difficult for us to remember the simple joys. When you find yourself in a rut, it’s important to find another source of inspiration and go back to what you love (e.g. cooking, art, meditation, gardening, watching a favourite TV show, etc.).

Do whatever brings you joy, and the inspiration will likely follow.

Learning to tap into your mind and understand what it is that makes you feel good, is a direct way of tapping into your intuition.

2. Focus on the Good

Negativity will always breed more negativity. Similarly, thinking in a positive state – even when things aren’t going well – will signal positive return in the universe.

Many people are unaware of this concept and consequently end up with unchecked emotions being sent out into the universe, resulting in negative or undesirable results.

It’s been proven that humans always find a way to achieve the goals they really wish to achieve. If we think we can’t do something, we won’t. If we believe we can, we will take the action.

So what you need to do here is detach yourself from negativity and take a minute to re-evaluate what you are putting into the universe.

You intuition wants what is best for you so ask yourself, “Where or what am I feel called to share?” and then start believing that this is true for you.

3. Trust. Feel. Practice.

Most importantly, you have to give yourself the opportunity to make intuitive decisions.

Research has shown that emotion and intuition present themselves physically in our gut. In fact you’re probably familiar with that “gut feeling” you get when it comes to making big decisions. Well, it’s real.

Furthermore, if you give yourself the opportunity to actually feel it, you will notice. Sometimes in ways that are quite obvious (shivers down the spine, twisting in the tummy, chills down the back), and other times in ways that are more subtle.

The important part to remember is that you need to train yourself to recognize it. You’ll know when something is right and you’ll know when it’s off, but you need to start with practicing.

Start by Listen to how you really feel about what you want to do/eat/see.

You need to afford yourself the opportunity to follow that gut feeling. We often ignore this feeling in fear of the “what if’s” and the comfort we find in sticking with the status quo, but in practicing over time to trust you heart in decisions for smaller events (i.e. what you eat for breakfast, where to go for coffee, etc), you will build the confidence in your intuition enough to make larger more life impacting decisions later on.

Learn to stand in your truth. Let your heart lead and use your head to formulate the plan. 

The post 3 Ways to Learn to Trust Your Intuition appeared first on Lifestyle By Design Studio.

People pleasing – we have all been there. Caring what other people think. Adjusting our actions to appease people around us. Shifting our priorities to suit the expectations of other people in our lives. Relatable?

And so we end up doing things we don’t want to do, and spending time with people we don’t want because we want to stay out of the drama. Meanwhile, in reality, we are suppressing our true selves, our desires, and likely finding ourselves surrounded by people who put their own needs first and treat us like a doormat.

Does this sound familiar?

We use people pleasing as a way to avoid the discomfort of receiving disapproval from other people. Until eventually we reach this point where we begin to realize that these behaviours are self destructive.

And so it’s time to work through this sinking feeling of obligation. It’s time to stop people pleasing, and start living on your own terms.

1. Understand the Difference Between Love & People Pleasing

Here’s the thing you need to understand, love is something we get to choose to give away. We don’t require people to do anything in particular, or behave in a certain way… We can just love them for who they are and how they are.

However, what happens is our brain starts to think that we need to love people at our own expense. And whether we realize or not we start to think that if we love someone, they are allowed to treat us however they want, and we will continue to love them because love has no conditions.

But this is simply not true.

There needs to be this understanding that love will never require you to do something at your own expense.

Love starts with you.

If you stay in a situation where you are people pleasing, you are sacrificing yourself and you say you are doing it out of love, you are mistaken.

People pleasing is not love, it is lying to yourself about how you really feel.

We get so worried about how people will react to us saying how we really feel, that we avoid it all together. While this may work in the short term to avoid conflict, it leaves us to have to deal with a much bigger problem in the long term.

So in order to first begin addressing this, we need to…

2. Become Self-Aware

The greatest changes begin when we look at ourselves with interest and respect, instead of judgement and denial.

When we invite our thoughts and feelings into awareness, we have the opportunity to learn from them, instead of just reacting to them, and we increase our awareness of reality by being willing to encounter our personal truths.

We start to tune into what we really want.

It’s about learning that the health of your relationships depends on your willingness to take care of your share and be true to yourself, and although your intentions might be good, they will ultimately hinder the overall effectiveness of your relationships if you can’t see that your behaviours are negatively impacting your life. Regardless of whatever positive [or seemingly positive] impact they may have on the people around you, if you aren’t looking out for your own wellbeing, you aren’t doing anyone any favours.

3. Accept that Avoidance Won’t Lead to a Solution

When problems arise in our lives, we tend to react by immediately trying to get rid of them and the feelings they bring.

This is exactly what happens with people pleasing.

We end up doing everything we can to avoid a negative reaction, including compromising our own love, happiness, and desires. Which in turn, only further fuels the urge to please therefore making things worse for ourselves in the future.

so when it comes to learning how to stop people please, it’s really about facing our self-destructive tendencies head on and doing the tough thing in order to benefit in the long run.

Ultimately the truth is, it’s never too late to live a free life — one that’s finally on your own terms.

Realizing how unhelpful our people pleasing behaviours are to ourselves and those around us, will only help us in learning to let go of the people and places, and activities that we are investing our love, time, and energy into purely out of obligation.

The truth is, you are going to remain imprisoned by these feelings, never able to access your full potential, if you don’t learn to let go.

Once you can start to learn and accept your worth, you will be able to start taking on the project of becoming your best self, and to start to take steps and set examples of loving yourself each and every day.

The post 3 Ways to Stop People Pleasing appeared first on Lifestyle By Design Studio.

Have you ever thought about your definition of success?

What is it? What does it look like?

It could be money. It could be recognition. It could be freedom.

Regardless of what success is or looks like for you, there is a commonality amongst most people, and that is, that in order to achieve success, it requires hard work and persistence.

In this life, there is a well defined difference between people who create their own life to become successful on their own terms, and people who settle for what life provides them.

(& the truth is that latter often end up feeling very stuck)

In order to create the life you want, you need the foundation for a mindset that allows you to succeed. You don’t have to be the smartest person, have access to the most resources, or be the most talented in order to be successful; you just have to make the effort to try, and continue see your dream through to the end even when times get tough.

These two tips will help you do just that.

1. Remember Mindset is Everything.

As with any pursuit in life, your mindset will directly impact your results.

 If you believe in yourself that you can do whatever you set out to accomplish, you are much more like to succeed at it, becase subconsciously you know you are capable.

Similarly, the opposite is true.

Having the confidence to know that you can accomplish things, will lead you to believe that you can and will accomplish even more.

Even when when you find yourself making mistakes along the way (this is inevitable); you will do so knowing that you are trying your best. And rather than let them derail you, you can learn to have the perspective to understand that mistakes are learning experiences to iterate, learn, and to do better later on.

The sooner you forgive yourself, the sooner you can get back on track, let go, and trust you are still capable of success.

2. Understand That Persistence is Necessary

Millennials are a generation dependent on instant satisfaction, reward, and success. I hate it, but it’s true. We want to do the thing and see the results, right away.

But the truth is, REAL success doesn’t work that way in the long term and this can make it difficult to stay motivated when times get tough. 

So, in order to be successful you need to be willing to commit to your pursuit. You need to pick something that you wish to achieve (career, relationship, hobby etc.) and stick to it longer than 5 seconds.

Regardless of what you see on the internet, nothing is actually achieved over night. Great things take time. (Typically, likely much longer than anticipated.)

So, you have to be willing to put in not only the work and the time the work takes, but you also have to put in the time waiting in the place of not knowing when or how things will work out.

The rewards aren’t always obvious or immediate, so remain patient and trust the process.

– – –

Define your own success, and then remember that it all starts with making a single move. You will never know if something is right for you unless you try it. Break down your goals and approach them piece by piece – consistently.

The world is yours to pursue. All beliefs are limiting, but it is up to you where that limit is. 

I believe in you.

Still not sure where to start? Try my FREE Journaling Course to help find some answers.

The post 2 Ways to Find Success appeared first on Lifestyle By Design Studio.

Have you ever felt like everyone else has life figured out except you?

Have you ever found yourself crippled by the fear of what other’s would think, feeling like you aren’t enough, feeling like you aren’t ready?

Meanwhile, from the outside things look fine… like you have it all together, but then somewhere, for some reason you don’t feel like you can’t go further…

You find yourself in this place where you want to make a change, but you’re stuck feeling like: “Where do I go from here?”

Well friend, here’s the thing.

You are the only person who can truly know yourself through and through – your own thoughts and your own reactions. You are the only accurate compass you have to navigate through this world. This means your cannot navigate your decisions based on what other people might say or think or do about it.

The only thing you are responsible for in this life is your intention, not your reception. You can control what you put out into the world, but what you can not control is how people receive or react to what you do. By being too afraid to stand strong in your beliefs, you are subconsciously telling yourself that the opinion of others is more important than your own happiness.

It’s therefore important to remember that to be firm in what you believe in, is really just a way of making the commitment to yourself to love yourself above all else.

& here are my tips to help you learn to tune and trust that the decisions you are making are right for you, your journey, your truth, and no one else.

1. Focus on the Present

Have you ever found yourself dwelling on the past or stressing about the future? (Yeah, same).

Unfortunately, these are both completely useless practices because you cannot change either.

People who are happy, or successful, or actually do great things with their lives are all in on the same secret. And the secret is that they understand the importance of the now. Not only are these people choosing themselves, but they are also choosing to focus on the actions necessary right now to get them where they want to be later.

This doesn’t mean you have to change your whole life.

You simply need to recognize that moving forward is always going to get you forward no matter how slow you are moving.

So start by asking these questions:

• What is one step I can take forward?
• What is ONE thing that will get me incrementally closer to where I want to be?

Start here, today, right now and stop worrying about what might be coming tomorrow.

2. Trust What Your Body Tells You

Let’s face it, when something isn’t right for you – no matter how you try to justify it – your body knows.

Have you ever made a decision that just didn’t sit quite right in your gut? Or perhaps you’ve said yes to doing something only to be left feeling heavy, restricted, or trapped?

Learning to understand this instinct is one, but learning to trust it is another. The fact of the matter is, your body never lies, so you need to pay attention. You need to trust what your intuition is saying and you need to muster the courage to stand in your truth.

Choosing to be vocal about how we really feel can be difficult because people may disagree, but it’s important to trust your decision and stay in that uncomfortable place. I promise you it will pass.

Those who truly love and respect you will come around to recognize that you are standing in your own truth. While it may not be easy, I assure you it will be worth it.

3. Make Feeling Good a Priority

Lastly, in the high demand world we live in it can be all too easy to ignore our body’s signals in order to take care of everyone else’s needs. So I want to encourage you to stop worrying about what other people are feeling for a minute, and learn to test things against your own body’s compass.

This is your life and you should be your number one priority. So listen to your body, and act accordingly; guilt free.

*And if you struggle with this, go listen to Adulting 101, EP 138 How to Put Yourself First (Be Selfish)*

Make sure that you are showing others that you matter to you, as much as you matter to them. Lead by example. Teach others to value and care for themselves by adopting that into your lifestyle.

Choosing yourself is not selfish; in fact it is the only way you can thrive in this world.

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