Now, I’m all for living in the moment—but summer’s shift into fall can stir up a little sadness for me.
Does it for you?
The alarm goes off way too early on mornings that are so dark. The store displays fill with cozy sweaters and heavy raincoats. And you’ve got to steer around all the big yellow buses suddenly out on the road.
When the calendar circles around to autumn, the energy of Spaciousness makes way for the energy of Structure.
Instead of dreaming, playing and relaxing, it’s:
- Organizing
- Scheduling
- Meeting
- Networking
- Packing Lunches
- Buying School Supplies
- Wearing Socks
So I got thinking today about some ways to bring some of that light, easy and fun summer spirit into your full fall schedule.
How to do fall without panicking or feeling like you’re on a hamster wheel!
Tip #1: Know Where You’re Going
Any road will get you there, if you don’t know where you are going.
–Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
One way to feel a lot lighter and have a lot more fun in fall—is simply to get SUPER-clear about where you want to be. Because, trust me, nothing makes you feel like life is heavy and hard than when you only have a vague idea where you’re going.
So, right now, look at these 3 areas of your life—and set a year-end plan for where you want to be.
HEALTH, BUSINESS and FUN.
Look at each of those areas and get specific, positive and REALISTIC about where you want to be or what you want to have.
So, rather than “Lose 20 pounds,” say, “Weigh 130 pounds and wear a size 6 dress at the New Year’s Eve party.”
Rather than, “Have more fun with my husband,” say, “Go for a hike with my husband every Saturday morning at 8 a.m.”
Rather than, “Get more visibility in my business,” say, “Write and send my weekly blog every Friday morning.”
You get it.
Frame what you want in a positive way.
Make it a clear and tangible goal.
Now, here’s the part that most people don’t do.
Dream your dream a little bit.
Dive into it like you’re diving into a cool lake on a hot day.
Feel it in your body.
If you want to write a book, what’s it going to feel like to have your book written? Can you see the cover and imagine holding the book in your hands?
Now, it’s been a few weeks since the Summer Olympics, but let’s bring them back for a bit. Sports psychologists teach athletes to VISUALIZE their goal—down to the smallest details. They picture entering the locker room, tying their shoes, stretching, etc. Right up to feeling the finish line tape hit their body as they cross in first place.
So be Olympian with your goal. See it in your mind and feel all aspects of it.
If you can see it, you can make it so.
And don’t worry about how it’s going to happen—just trust that it will.
Now, just one more step.
Write it down.
I love this study about the power of writing down your goals: 3 percent of a Harvard Business School graduating class had written goals and plans to accomplish them, 13 percent had their goals only in their minds and 84 percent had no goals at all.
A decade later, researchers checked on the grads. The 13 percent with goals in mind, but not on paper, was earning twice what the 84 percent who had no goals were making. But that 3 percent who’d written down their goals?
They were earning an average of 10 times more than the other 97 percent of the class.
I promise that the clarity of having a specific goal in these areas will be like heading out on the best summer road trip ever.
You’ll feel excited, happy and have so much fun along the way.
Take that, busy autumn!
And don’t miss next week’s blog for Tip #2, which involves lots of celebrating…
P.S. Stay tuned for more about my upcoming online course on getting organized and productive, so you get the results you want!