How can I motivate myself to change my life? | 5 thoughts that stop you

Despite my past successes, I often find myself back at the brink of indifference in my life. I wallow for a while in discontent until I start asking myself once more, “How can I motivate myself to change my life?”

And here I am again. Thinking it’s impossible. Wondering if I’ll ever be able to reach a new lofty goal. Afterall, I’m much older now. It feels foolish really, to try something that pushes myself to the limits–especially when I wonder just how long I’ll be able to sustain the change.

Can you relate?

Writing a book.  Finishing a marathon.  Losing weight.  Expanding your spirituality.  Becoming a better parent.  Improving mental health. Landing a promotion.  Opening your heart to love. Overcoming sadness.

Just fill in your blanks.

But despite my doubts, somewhere inside, I know changing my life is possible because I’ve been that person–standing proudly at the finish line. I know how great it feels to accomplish something big (big to ME anyway), while others are on the sidelines congratulating me and wondering how I did it.

Past successes don’t give you immunity to negative thoughts

Unfortunately, no matter how many times I’ve seen prior success in life or love, next time around, I still see the same obstacles! Lucky for me–because I’ve been around the block a few times, I know those obstacles are really just “thoughts in my head.”

I learned how important it is to identify and debunk those thoughts that threaten to derail any life transforming accomplishment.

So let me share some of the thoughts I’m still learning to ignore! I hope these perspectives will motivate you toward a big life change.

How can I motivate myself to change my life?

Ignoring these 5 thoughts can change your life for the better

1. What if I fail?

So what if you fail? In order to make a habit of something, you will always have to start at square one.  Nobody has the luxury of waking up as a star athlete, without having made the painful day-by-day decision to train hard.  Failure starts with the FIRST time you say NO to a positive change. 

2. What if I fall off the wagon?

You WILL fall off the wagon.  Falling off the wagon is an indication that you were on it to begin with.  FAILURE is the perfect start.  It’s an indication, “You’ve begun.”  Yes, you may have to run to catch up and jump back on the train.  But EXPECT to FALL and when you do, get back up again, brush yourself off and smile as others smirk at what they perceive to be your naive commitment to success. 

3. What if this is JUST a stage?

It IS a STAGE.  Your life is made up of stages!  Don’t spend time obsessing over how long your new-found direction in life will last.  There is a lot to be said for “changing directions.”  Your “stage” is made up of small choices that those around you will observe for better or worse.  You never know the impact that those choices will have on others.  Your phase of eating healthy today may inspire one of your friends or family members to make it their ongoing lifestyle.  Eventually, you may just find that your “healthy” STAGES will all connect together to equal an overall healthy life lived! 

4. What if my family and friends are resistant to the change or jealous of me?

They WILL be resistant to CHANGE!  All of us are part of or have been part of unhealthy relationships because those kinds of relationships kind of just evolve.  We don’t have to TRY to have unhealthy relationships.  We only have to TRY to end them or transform them.  They are a result of who we are when we’re NOT deliberate about life. 

As soon as you start being proactive about your actions, your unhealthy relationships will immediately bubble to the surface, and you’ll be forced to make yet another CHOICE. 

Do I continue to seek change and deal with family and friends who:

• Don’t believe I’ll succeed
• Don’t want to lose the part of me that made them comfortable with who they are
• Fear they’ll have to change too, if they want to continue to keep my company? 

Avoiding positive change to sustain mediocre or codependent relationships is a mental health disaster waiting to happen.  Ask me how I know. 

Your healthy choices will change those around you, or else!  There’s no getting around that.

5. What if the “change” doesn’t really produce the intended results?

This one is the kicker for me. 

• What if I don’t feel better after all? 
• What if I don’t like the new me? 
• What if no one appreciates my success? 
• What if my success draws a hard line between myself and the ones I love? 
• What if taking a new direction means leaving others behind? 
• What if others are jealous of me instead of proud that I’ve finally accomplished something? 

These “Thoughts” are the ones that ultimately keep the greatest number of people from reaching their desired goals. 

Ultimately, you wonder if the outcome will outshine your previous way of living.  Just remember, in most cases–it’s easier to regress.  If your new life direction doesn’t pan out to be what you imagined, it should be pretty easy to revert back to your old way of living.

Conclusion

So, next time you find yourself asking, “How can I motivate myself to change my life,” remember — you’ll never find success until you proactively IDENTIFY and IGNORE your self-limiting beliefs. Negative thoughts won’t just magically disappear. You’ll have to reach the top of the mountain before you get the full view. You’ll finally see your mind was just playing tricks on you. 

Until you PERSONALLY feel like you’ve arrived—these thoughts will zap your motivation.  Don’t let your doubts stop you from taking your FIRST step toward real life change.

LoveLifeLinks.com believes you’ll overcome negative thinking and find the motivation to reach your goals!