Okay, so you’ve figured out what you want. Now what?
Do you have to work for it? Maybe but more than that I think the most difficult thing any of us have to learn is to show up for what we want.
Take this blog for instance.
About 9 months ago I knew I needed to start living my purpose. For me, it’s about helping others to live their true selves. So I decided to write a blog a week.
- Do I get paid for this? No.
- Do I earn an income from this? Also no.
So why do it? Because this is how I show up for my purpose.
In the end it’s about showing up for what’s important to me.
First things first – no one owes you a thing
No one owes you a thing. Just because you have a dream or work hard doesn’t mean you’re entitled to anything.
Showing up is for you, no one else. Sometimes showing up even though you have to sit the bench. Sometimes showing up means sacrificing what your ego wants and committing to what’s important to you.
I say this and up to today, it still takes practice.
3 Steps to Showing up for Your Life and What You Want
1. Focus on the habit NOT a goal
Showing up is a habit. It’s a DAILY habit. Let me give you an example of something I’ve cracked and something I haven’t to illustrate the difference.
As you know if you’ve read a few of my blogs, or my book, I moved to Spain and wanted to / needed to learn Spanish. Whilst I don’t speak perfectly I have a 4 year streak on Duolingo. That means for 4 years EVERY single day I’ve done at least one or more lessons in Spanish. For me, it’s gone from a dream to a goal to a daily habit. My life outside of work is in Spanish.
Take however something else I want; a super healthy immune system. Do I eat veggies daily? No. Do I drink enough water daily. No. Do I sleep enough hours? Nope.
More on this a little later but you get the point. When you show up, it means you show up daily. NO MATTER WHAT.
There are days I don’t feel like working out but I go anyway. There are days when I’m not excited for work but I put in the same effort. Sometimes I don’t feel like writing this blog but I promised myself that I would commit to this for a year and that’s what I’m doing to feel like I’m living my purpose.
Imagine all the people who could’ve written a great book? Or run a marathon? Or got that job they really wanted. But they never did because they simply never showed up to the interview. Or they never started writing or they stopped running after a week.
Consistency will get you places that motivation just can’t.
2. BUT you have to learn as you go!
If you keep practicing the same habits year after year and nothing changes then it’s time for you to change the game.
Consistency is key. Yes. But unless you’re learning and adapting as you go, you’re going nowhere fast.
3. Be your OWN best friend
How do you want to live? It’s a good question and not one many of us ask. HOW?
Not just what do you want to do or achieve but actually how do you want to live?
What are your values? What do you say yes to and what do you say no to? How do you keep yourself accountable?
Being your own best friend means being kind and supportive to yourself.
But it also means keeping yourself accountable and pushing yourself to level up.
What it looks like to show up for your life?
Showing up can mean different things at different times.
Here are a few examples of what it looks like;
- Resilience. Life can be a school of hard knocks and showing up can be about simply waking up and going about your daily tasks.
- Putting yourself out there, for that date, for that job interview or to do a course.
- Commit to yourself to a year of something you’d really like to do. For instance, most people want to lose weight for the summer. Try committing yourself to a year of getting into your best fitness rather.
It’s okay to feel fearful and afraid. Normal even. It’s okay to feel sad, demotivated, overwhelmed, anxious and all the other emotions that come with being human.
What isn’t okay is to let them stop you from living the life you know is right for you.
But Lisa, this is hard
Often we’re trying to swim in a direction we’ve never swum before. Or we’re trying to achieve something we can’t imagine because it’s never happened for us. So we have a ton of limiting beliefs and we simply can’t imagine it ever happening for us. That is understandable and that’s why there are some great coaches to help you work through those challenges.
Trust me when I say however, you’ve got this.
