So, what’s stopping you?
I noticed over the winter that I was daydreaming about what it would be like when summer comes, the freedom to move around and the joy of warm sun on my skin; planning what I would do then. I realised that I was drifting off again into the future. It is lovely to look ahead and dream about the possibilities. It is a great way to do nothing NOW.
Our dreams are nothing unless we put legs underneath them and make them happen. As Joel A. Barker said ‘A vision without action is merely a dream. Action without vision just passes the time. Vision with action can change the world’.
What causes us not to take action? We often procrastinate. Many clients tell me that they need to have a deadline to get them motivated. This seems strange when we think about it. You would think that we would all be motivated to have the best possible life, be the best version of ourselves, and live every moment with gratitude and joy. So, there must be something that stops us.
When partnering with clients, we spend a lot of time clarifying what they want to achieve. Taking time to develop their personal vision creates a connection to it and a desire for it. They have to really want to make a change. Otherwise, they will not have the level of commitment that will take them into and through the actions that will be required to get there. Real change is never easy. We have ways of being in the world that have developed over many years. To decide to change is to choose to let go of part of who you were or thought you were and welcome a newer version of yourself. That new version is not familiar. It is like looking in a mirror and seeing someone else. The internal shifts you make will show up externally in different behaviours, different interactions and often actually in different looks.
The key to real change is on the strength of the desire that the vision holds for you. If it resonates with you and calls to you, then you will naturally be drawn to it and find the strength to undergo the metamorphosis that required. If the desire is not strong, then it suggests that you have not yet found what it is that you truly seek. I have found that having a coach and talking out loud about what I think I want for my life helps me to get clarity. I start to feel the future forming, and I can take the first step towards it. Having someone to support me on the journey helps me to set manageable steps along the way, always moving forward, sometimes fast and sometimes slow – but moving. So, what is stopping you from taking the first step?