What’s stopping you from living the life of your dreams?

Solutions to those excuses that you keep on giving.

In a survey I asked what’s stopping you from living the life of your dreams.

The top three reasons that people gave were time, money and fear (disguised as no confidence, no self belief and the fear of letting people down).

Time

We all start off with the same number of hours in our day but we all have different responsibilities.

We all have to fit in time to sleep, eat and work, do the chores and care for the family – and then often all that you want to do is to crash in bed and sleep – but if you are using time as one of your blocks you can stop right now!

There are plenty of ways to help you stop using time as an excuse so pick one or a variety of the following to free up more time – and then get out there and fill that space with things that make you come alive.

• Delegate household chores – a 14 year old is perfectly capable of ironing their own clothes.
• Leave work on time – don’t give extra unpaid hours to your employer. If they can’t pay you overtime then the work can wait until the following day.
• Get out of bed an hour earlier.
• Switch off the TV – or at least be picky about what you really want to watch.
• Multi-task – listen to an inspirational podcast while you are cooking dinner or read on the bus on the way to work.
• Walk, jog or cycle to or from work – this deals with the ‘no time to exercise excuse’.
• Use your lunchtime productively.
• If you have a large task to do, break it down into less daunting and manageable chunks.  For instance, if you want to get started on that novel – just 20 minutes a day is better than nothing.  After a month you will have the first couple of chapters under your belt.
• Read up on different time management techniques. Use something like Toodledo to manage your time and focus on the important tasks.
• Make a list.  Make lots of lists.  I love lists
• When you cook, double up on the recipe and freeze half for the following week.  This gives you a cook-free evening so that you can do something for you instead of spending it in the kitchen.

Money

Unlike time, we don’t all begin from a level playing field BUT in some ways, unlike the time barrier, the money excuse can be easier to work around.

There are so many opportunities and activities out there for free or at a reduced rate; there really is no excuse for not introducing some sparkle into your life. Try some of the following – but I am sure that you can think of many others yourself.

• Museums, art galleries and gardens often have a free admission day a month
• A picnic in the park or on the beach can be just as much fun as a meal in a restaurant
• Take advantage of 2 for 1 offers – from groceries to cinema tickets.
• Trainee hairdressers, chiropodists and even dentists often offer free or heavily discounted treatments
• A bed in a dormitory is an experience and hostels are usually great, clean, friendly and safe places to stay.
• Cancel your gym membership and get outside for your run or buy a second hand bike.
• Reduce your expensive TV package. You are going to be watching a lot less TV anyway.
• Change your eating and drinking habits. Shop at markets, cook local fresh and in-season products, drink less alcohol and cut out or reduce your smoking.
• Find a group that meets locally and does something that interests you. You could find a book club, a choir, a photography club or a rambling group. This will connect you with like-minded people. can give you free resources and adds sparkle to your life.
• Put the money that you would normally splurge each day on a takeaway coffee into a jar – by the end of a week you can go to the cinema.

Fear

Fear is the biggest obstacle to living the life of your dreams.

You can claw back some extra time, you can make budget cuts but the one thing that will ultimately stop you is fear.

• I can give you the tools which will boost your self confidence and your self esteem.
• I can help you to learn to value yourself and to believe in yourself again.
• But at the end of the day it is down to you and how much you want to change your life.
• Do you want to come to the end of your life regretting that you never took the plunge and took those chances?

Seriously, what do you really have to lose – compared to what you could gain?

The next step.

Congratulations – because if you are still reading this then you must be ready to make some changes to your life.

I can help you and support you while you do this so drop me an email or connect with me on Facebook and arrange your no-strings, no obligation call.

What do you have to lose?

What’s stopping you from living the life of your dreams?

Live life to the fullest