Sometimes we set goals from a place of pressure or expectation, not from our true desires. If that’s the case, working towards your goals will be fraught with stress and overwhelm, instead of excitement and internal motivation to strive forward. 

New month is a perfect time to re-evaluate our priorities and goals. If there was something you actively worked towards, take the time to assess what worked, what didn't, what you want to keep doing, what you need to let go, or what might be something new you want to try. 

When you start creating new habits that no longer fit into your old lifestyle, you might feel as if you are pretending and faking it.
 
You might be worried about other people’s opinions. You might come up with reasons for why you shouldn’t follow through.

At one point in my life, I truly believed in overnight success. I believed some people were born lucky and special, and everything came easy to them.
 
And I believed I wasn’t one of those people.

​Reaching for something outside of ourselves to make us feel better reinforces the idea that “I shouldn’t be feeling this way,” and “something or someone other than me can make it go away” - both of which are recipes for suffering.

Creating a new future and embracing change isn’t possible while being committed to same beliefs that created our current reality.
The more we feed and entertain our possibilities, instead of our perceived limitations, the more inclined we are to take action towards realizing them.

We all have moments or even extended periods of our life we wish we can get back. Now that we are older and wiser, our past choices may seem troublesome and we believe we would now choose differently. The more we dwell on past decisions & non-decisions and the more power we give to them, the more we sleepwalk through life.

Our adult lives are as much about learning and allowing as they are about unlearning and letting go.

So much of our identities and the beliefs we hold were colored by our childhood conditioning and adaptation to our environment.

Living authentically and honoring yourself may involve making decisions others judge or disapprove of.
 

If you don’t know what you want, maybe you haven’t spent enough time with yourself.
 
Self-discovery can start by simply as turning your curiosity inwards. Not to judge, evaluate, or analyze, but to observe and learn.

There’s nothing fake about practicing new beliefs that may not yet feel true.

* The more you practice them, the more they will feel embodied.

* Recently I heard that in order to change negative thoughts, you just need to replace them with the opposite/ positive thought.

If you say things like:
It’s going to be hard
It’ll take a long time
I don’t know how
I shouldn’t…
It’s going to be overwhelming, uncomfortable, scary, etc.
It always ends the same way
I already know that
It’s just who I am
It’s always the same thing
I just can’t seem to…
 
If you say these things to yourself, you already decided.

If you’re not empowered and excited by the fact that you have the freedom to change the course of your life, it’s because you’re scared.
 
Believing we are powerless can be easier than believing we are powerful.

Why can’t you be the first one?
 
Just because no one around you took risks and opportunities, or decided to go against the grain, doesn’t mean your path can’t be different. If you grew up without seeing examples of the life and accomplishments you’re dreaming of, be the first one to do it!

You can pressure and push yourself towards something or you can be pulled towards it.
 
Judging, pressuring, and shaming yourself is one way to change, grow, and accomplish. It’s the way we use when we’re not connected to our deeper truth and authentic “why.”

As we move through life, it is natural to change and evolve. We will feel that change needs to take place when the way we navigated life isn’t working in our favor anymore. Changes can be abrupt and unexpected or subtle and predictable.

Fears may be driving many behaviors and thoughts that prevent us from engaging in full living.
 
Oftentimes, we feel drawn to something that seeks expression in our life, but then, fear comes up and we interpret it as a sign that we should stay complacent.

The moment we believe we know everything about ourselves, we stop learning and being curious. Self inquiry and curiosity are some of the most powerful tools for healing and growth, because they challenge our assumptions and rigid beliefs we hold about ourselves - often beliefs that are hurting us.

Your desire is your permission. When you authentically want something, the desire in itself is your permission to pursue it. There is a reason why this desire came to you. Following its direction is following your growth, potential, and fulfillment. 

If we want to create different results, we must look towards our future. We can’t keep turning towards the past to tell us what we’re capable of, what is possible for us, and how we can get to where we want to be. Past is limited with what it can show us because it only has experiences of what has already happened, not what hasn’t happened yet.