Feelings versus Future: Making the Choice Powerfully
You are so inspired going to bed about tomorrow. You watched a movie that got you fired up about working out. Tomorrow, everything is going to be different! You’re going to be a new BETTER human and get into that shape, write that book, … (you fill in the blank)!
Then you go to bed.
The alarm goes off. It makes that awful noise AND it’s still dark outside. How easy it is to just stay here in bed and have today be like every other day up till now. This is the moment of truth! Do you follow you feelings? Or do you step into your future?
To have something different in our lives it requires something different. We are a result of what we have done up to this moment in time. That’s great news if you love everything about your life. It’s also great news if you don’t, because it means you get to architect something different from your actions. Sounds so easy to do till another morning and another alarm arrives!
Today I got really present to the dilemma about feeling versus my future because I have lived both sides AND I continue to live it every single morning. I know how comfortable my bed it, how comfortable my kitties are, how dark it is outside at the butt of dawn and how AMAZING I feel when I get up and accomplish something on the way to dream! Make no mistake, there are plenty of mornings when my feelings win! The game is keep powerfully choosing your future so you continue to create a life you are excited about every day of your life.
Choosing your future: Get Clear!
The first step to a powerful life is always about getting clear. Having a clear vision of what you actually want. When you are clear about what you want, it is much easier to push past uncomfortable. You can easily make the choice that your healthy heart is worth more than the taste of a greasy bag of chips, or that a morning run will lead you to that race’s finish line, instead of a Netflix and chill day in your underpants. Clarity of purpose is always the foundation of a life you design.
How do you get clear? There are so many ways to get yourself clear about what you want. Don’t let yourself get stuck in “I don’t know”. Get curious and play with it, try things out, vision board it, journal it and notice what pisses you off. What you want in your life will become clear if you are willing to see it. Sometimes, its also around what you need to let go of.
Discipline and willpower is a muscle!
Think about discipline and willpower as if it were a muscle that can both get stronger and get really tired! Ever wondered why at the end of the day it’s harder to resist those delicious salty snacks, or why you can’t get yourself to the gym now that you’ve taken your shoes off after getting home from work. This is because that particular ‘muscle’ is tired after a day of resisting temptation and making decisions. That means set yourself up for success!
Here’s how to set yourself up of success in creating a life you love:
Set up a routine where the hardest discipline actions are as early in the day as they can be. Your workout, your morning pages, your meditations, your most important activities need to be as you roll out of bed so they get done. Once you really get rolling into your routine, it won’t even be something you think about. Whether you feel like it or not won’t even come into the equation.
Keep temptation at bay by not having these items in the house. I know for me, there are certain items that can’t be in my house such as Nutella and peanut m&m’s. Because I understand that by the end of the day I can’t resist these things, I just don’t have them around to taunt me. If they were around, I would eat them! But because they aren’t, I can’t so they won’t sabotage me. Think about ways that you are actually sabotaging yourself. Can you get rid of them?
Affirmations and visualizations can keep you on track. As part of an amazing routine add in affirmations and visualizations that can keep you focused on your purpose and keep you connected to your vision. Keeping yourself connected to your vision is the secret to always choosing that amazing future over your feelings.
Choose powerfully between feelings and future. There will be plenty of times when you will choose your feelings and not your future. On your birthday, by all means, choose that cake and that amazing night on the town with your friends. Sure you probably won’t be able to do that early morning run the next morning. But make that decision and own it! Don’t let any decision eat at you. You can’t change it, once you’ve made it.