To experience new heights of joy, the only requirement is a willingness to challenge yourself to break out of your self-imposed limitations.

Getting outside of your comfort zone doesn’t always mean taking giant steps or doing something crazy. Expanding your comfort zone can mean small changes. For example, read a book you usually wouldn’t pick up, learn about something that challenges your viewpoint, or take a language course. Do things that are different than your ordinary daily routine.

Small Ways to Get Out of Your Comfort Zone

To begin experiencing the joy you deserve, stretch yourself!

Here are some ideas you can use to help yourself expand your comfort zone:

• Take a walk around part of your neighborhood that you don’t normally visit.

• Go to a different store to shop for your groceries, clothes, or other items.

• Talk with a neighbor or introduce yourself to people who are new to the neighborhood.

• Sign up for a college class or an online course in something.

• Take an art, acting, or dance class. You’ll meet new people and learn a new skill.

You can increase your comfort zone in many ways. If you want to create more joy, think about things you like to do or want to learn about. Expanding your comfort zone is about doing things you like. It’s about showing yourself that you can do more than you thought you could.

Moving on to Bigger Things

Once you’ve taken small steps outside your comfort zone, seek to stretch your boundaries further with greater challenges. If you’re shy, get to know your neighbors. To go further, throw a party or have a backyard barbecue. You’ll enjoy some time with others in your neighborhood while expanding your limits.

Take a drama class, then participate in a play or join an amateur competition to stretch yourself further. These challenges may seem daunting to you, but others in the class will be nervous also. And it’s okay to be a little nervous sometimes. It shows that you’re growing and developing as a person. It shows that you want to live life to the fullest.

Avoid Trying Too Much Too Fast

If you try to do too many things at once, you may become so nervous that you miss the joy that comes from stretching your inner boundaries. Instead, you may experience frustration and lack motivation to venture outside of your comfort zone again. Take small steps at first, and the success you experience will fuel your drive toward bigger challenges.

To be truly happy, you must be proactive in seeking the life you desire. If you challenge yourself with activities you enjoy, leaving your comfort zone can lead you to the life of passion and fulfillment that you deserve!

photo credit: Ashutosh Khandha

Taking action towards your dreams and goals is clearly vital, but it’s not always easy to stay consistent and build momentum. However, taking action is one of those important pieces to the puzzle along with proper planning and the drive to succeed. Those that take action are the ones that see results.

How do you motivate yourself to continue working toward your goals, especially when you face challenges? Although some strategies will motivate you more than others, it’s good to experiment with several different ways of finding your motivation. Then, when the chips are down, you can depend on one of these strategies to get back on track.

Try these techniques to motivate yourself to take action:

1. Break your goals into smaller, attainable steps. Especially if you’re working toward a bigger goal, break it up into a series of small steps that you know you can achieve. After each step, celebrate and reward yourself for a job well done. With small steps, you’ll be more likely to stay on task because your rewards come often.
2. Know your limits. You know yourself best and only you can identify your personal limits. If you move too slowly, you’ll know deep down that you could be taking more action. However, when you try to do too much, you risk burnout. Figure out that magic point where you can achieve success without much stress, and you’ll remain motivated to keep taking action.
3. Take away your distractions. There are some things that might be more likely to distract you than others. Remove yourself from these situations when you know that you need to be taking action.
   • For example, if you’re a social person, perhaps you’ll need to stay away from friends and family during the times you want to work. Also, avoid surfing the net, video games, and television when it’s time to work.
4. Ask for the help you need. Don’t be afraid to get help from others. There’s only so much you can accomplish in one day all by yourself. It’s true that sometimes you’ll have to accomplish certain things on your own, but if there’s any way at all that someone else can help, consider that possibility and ask them.
5. Find an activity that energizes you. Sometimes you’ll find that there’s a period in the day where you go into a slump. Maybe you have trouble starting your engines in the morning, or perhaps it’s the afternoon that causes you to feel sluggish.
   • In these times, find some activity to re-motivate and energize you. One thing that can energize you is a good exercise routine. It’ll get your heart rate up and send fresh oxygen to your brain. This will refresh you, help you think more clearly, and make you feel more like doing your work.
6. Keep a tight schedule. A good schedule and organized plan will help keep you motivated and on track. In the beginning phases of planning your goals, be very specific when deciding what you need to do and when. This way, when you complete a step, you won’t have to spend time figuring out what you’re supposed to do next.

If you want to succeed, you can do it through purposeful action. Just think about what you’ve done to accomplish goals in the past. Chances are you had a plan and followed through. It might not always be easy, but when you remain motivated, you’ll reach whatever goal you set out to accomplish!

When you concentrate on the positive, your life will be positive. It sounds simple enough, but many times people let negative emotions get the better of them. You have the power within you to break those negative habits. Once the negativity is gone, you can speed up the whole process of dream achievement.

Try using the following ways to speed up your law of attraction results:

1. Feel strong emotions in your visualizations. When you visualize the results you want, put your whole heart into the process. If you go after something half-heartedly, whether physically or through visualizations, your results are half-hearted also.

• Feel the happiness in living the life you dream, the pride in your achievements that got you there, and the pure joy of success.

2. Focus on the present. See yourself successful in the present rather than the future. If you keep thinking about the good things that are coming tomorrow, they’ll never be here today! Take full advantage of today to do what you can to achieve your dreams. Even small steps add up to big achievements.

3. Use vision boards effectively. Whenever you see these pictures, let the positive emotions of your meditations sweep over you. Thoroughly enjoy them in the present moment. Take time to feel your emotions without holding anything back.

4. Exhibit the qualities of your dream life. Determine the qualities of your dream life and exemplify them today. For example, in your dreams, you may be confident and generous toward others. Show confidence and generosity now instead of waiting until after you’re successful, because showing them will, in fact, make them arrive sooner.

5. Keep your thoughts positive. Thinking positively allows you to bring on a mindset of gratitude and abundance. Recognize when your mind starts to shift to negative thoughts and do whatever it takes to correct the problem.

• Focus on positive affirmations or self-talk to replace the negative thoughts as soon as they occur.

6. Avoid dwelling on any negative situation. The power of thought can alter any situation. Focusing on the negative attracts more negative back to you. Alternatively, focusing on the positive is more likely to result in positive outcomes. So whenever a challenge arises, seek a solution and take action to overcome it rather than wallowing in self-pity.

7. Be as clear as you can. Strive for the utmost clarity when focusing on your dreams, as every detail makes it more real to you. This will allow you to give all of your positive energy to your thoughts as you visualize.

8. Believe in the process. You’re belief in the process of the law of attraction is vital to your success. You might strive for complete positivity, but if you have doubts about the outcome deep down, then you’ll still allow negative thoughts to influence you. You have to believe in the process because anything that’s possible can happen for you with the right mindset.

9. Be open to receive. Are you ready to receive the results you desire? For example, if you wish for a new love, do you have room for them in your life? If you remain open to the universe, it will send back what you desire most in the world.

The law of attraction entails a lot more than just sitting around thinking about what you want. The key element is inspired action. When you believe you can achieve, you’ll naturally take action to get what you want. And this is where it all comes together. When your mind and your actions are in harmony, nothing can stop you!

While you won’t be able to completely eliminate regret in your life, you can take steps to reduce it. Strive to keep your life organized and live your life your way.

Establish Your Priorities

One way to begin living without regret is to sort out your priorities. Ask yourself what ultimate goal you’re working towards. Are you happy with where you are and where you’re going? If you’re living your life according to plan and you’re happy, then you have nothing to regret.

If changes need to be made, taking small steps may be of help to you. Once you’ve made decisions that you’re comfortable with, you may feel as if a weight has been lifted from your shoulders. This is regret leaving your life!

Live By the Golden Rule

Everyone can benefit by living his or her life with the golden rule in mind. The golden rule is known in all of the world’s religions. It’s special because it’s a concept that we can all agree on, despite our differences.

Simply stated, the golden rule is: “Treat people the way you’d like to be treated.” If you do this, you’ll definitely keep your regrets to a minimum. You’ll be learning how to treat people with kindness no matter what. You’ll be learning how to treat people fairly and you’ll gain empathy. When you put yourself in someone else’s shoes before you act, you’ll be less likely to engage in an act that you’ll regret later.

Take Swift Action

The next step is to take swift action in your life. You only have one life and the time is now. If your goals are clear and you know what you want, what are you waiting for? A common regret is not doing the things that are truly important to them. You need to do these things instead of putting them off until tomorrow!

Have you always wanted to start your own business? Start one! Would you like to get back in touch with your father? Do it! Yes, it’s difficult, yet it’s also simple once you’ve made the commitment to act.

Spend Time with Loved Ones

Spend all the time you can with your loved ones. If they live far away, visit when you can and call often.

Make time for your immediate family by scheduling dinners together or family nights out. Delve deep into the relationships you have with your family. A common regret is sticking to surface topics when it comes to your family. Find out the hopes, fears and even regrets of your family members. Sharing your regrets can be another way of coming to a resolution!

Forget Regret

Ultimately, it always comes down to the fact that you can’t change the past no matter how hard you try, nor how often you think about it. All you can do is take action now to change what happens in the future.

Regret clouds our current thinking and stands in the way of a happy future. But you have the power to blast through regret and move forward with your life!

The only way to help the situation is to take action. You don’t need to resort to anything drastic, but if you take action even in small steps it could make all the difference.

Here are some action strategies for reducing your anxiety:

1. Get a biofeedback device. A biofeedback device will show you the subtle things your body does when it gets anxious. It will record your actions, such as increased heart rate, perspiration, temperature, and strained muscles. These are things you don’t normally notice.

When the biofeedback device gives you these readings, you get to know your body better and you’re then more able to counteract these symptoms and relax.

2. Talk with friends. Feeling anxious also usually makes you feel quite alone. One way to combat this is to remain open about your feelings and communicate with other people. Make time for your friends or family.

3. Seek counseling. You know yourself best and will be able to tell if you’re having mild anxiety problems or severely life-altering issues. If your anxiety is showing an interference with your daily life, seek the advice of a healthcare professional.

4. Meditate. Meditation is certainly an action strategy even though it seems like quite the opposite. Your choice to be inactive is an action in itself. Try to meditate by taking deep breaths in and out. Doing so will relax all of your muscles in the process and your problems will begin to fade away.

5. Exercise. Start an exercise routine. Exercise gets the endorphins pumping and will actually relax you. When you engage in regular exercise you get your body into a healthy rhythm. You’ll have a built-in break from anxious situations when you make time for exercise.

6. Start a journal. Starting a journal can be a real stress reliever. It’s like you have a secret friend to vent to whenever you want. In addition to reducing anxiety, starting a journal might also be beneficial for you because it will help you preserve good memories, too.

7. Eat a balanced diet. Putting healthy foods into your body can help reduce anxiety. Analyze your current diet and pinpoint the items that might need to go. Enjoy the less healthy items in moderation while you increase your intake of the nutritious foods your body craves. Also, you may want to consider taking a multivitamin.

8. Drink water. This one sounds simple enough, right? The truth is that water has some amazing healing powers. Be sure to get at least 8 glasses of clear fluids each day.

9. Find an outdoor hobby. Play a sport or start a garden. Not only will you get some much-needed fresh air, but also you’ll relieve stress while taking your mind off of your problems.

Reducing Anxiety

The truth is there are many things you can do to actively reduce your anxiety. Make a list of the things you find relaxing and make sure that you allow yourself some time each day to do one of them.

Focus on gaining better control of your mind. Don’t let your thoughts run away with you. Instead, give yourself some time to unwind in the evenings. Most important of all, don’t be too hard on yourself. Everyone deals with anxiety at some time or another, but you can use these tips to keep it under control.

Here are some questions you might ask yourself:

* How important is financial wealth to me?
* Is having a happy or large family the most important thing in my life?
* Are there certain skills or gifts that I would like to master?
* When I die, what will be the most important goal I achieved?

How To Achieve Your Goals

It doesn’t really matter what you’ve set as your true calling, maybe it’s becoming a millionaire, living on the beach, or having a large family. The most important thing is that you have found your definition of greatness that personally applies to you.

Your next step is to form an action plan on how to achieve this goal. It may take a lifetime, but the only way you’re going to get there is with a plan!

Think Less Do More

It’s easy to get lost in your thoughts and plans, but you won’t achieve greatness by daydreaming alone. You need to take some powerful action to get there! Greatness won’t just fall into your lap – you need to work hard in order to get there.

Small Steps

Your definition of greatness is probably a lofty, multi-year goal, which can be a very intimidating and daunting task. But it doesn’t have to be so bad when you plan things out day by day in small, manageable steps.

It’s vital to take life day by day and, at the same time, keep the bigger picture in mind. When you set and achieve your small daily goals, you’ll build momentum without getting too overwhelmed.

Surrounded Yourself With Good People

It’s always great to be in the company of good, positive people. When you have someone you can look up to and model, you’re bringing yourself one step closer to greatness.

It’s also a good idea to be surrounded by people who can inspire, motivate, and encourage you. My biggest advice to you is to keep the negative, complaining type out of your life. Those people won’t bring you anywhere good!

Setbacks

It’s common to run into setbacks on your way to greatness. Things are not always going to turn out like you expect, but that is part of the journey to your success! When you hit a snag in the road, you need to pick yourself up, change course, and forge on.

Of course, you’ll want to maintain a high level of enthusiasm toward your goal. If a setback has got you down in the dumps, take a short break, then trudge along again! Don’t allow anything to get in the way of your goals.

You Are Already There

Every once in awhile it’s important to take a step back and reflect at your life. Are you enjoying your life and your journey? If so, then you’re actually already living your dream.

Remember: All you’ll ever have is the present moment. If you like where you are and where you’re going, greatness is already yours!

When I choose a goal, I take the time to make an action plan to reach it. My action plan consists of a series of small steps that lead to my ultimate success. It’s like a private map of my journey to victory!

Some of these steps are so small that they can be reached in less than a day. So my plan may be comprised of plenty of small actions, but I know that if I take one step at a time, I am sure to reach my destination.

When challenges arise, I take a deep breath and remind myself, “One step at a time.” This mindset helps me devise a positive solution. I can look at challenges from one angle at a time and come up with a way to go around it, overcome it, or use it to my advantage.

“One step at a time” also brings me patience when I need it and helps me relieve stress. I am calmer and more accepting of life’s challenges because I realize that everything is just one small step of many in my journey to success.

Today, I plan to follow my mantra, reminding myself that I am a conqueror – one step at a time.

Self-Reflection Questions:

1. Have I made an action plan of small steps that lead to my goal?
2. How can “one step at a time” help me overcome my current challenges?
3. How can I remind myself to use this mantra daily to get me where I want to be?

I have many tools in my toolbox that I can use to keep myself heading toward my goals. The ones I use most often are my action plan success strategy, affirmations, self-reflection, and time management.

My action plan success strategy sets me up for victory. I take the time to divide my goals into small steps that I know will get me to my destination. In my plan, each task that I complete brings me one step closer toward the achievement of my goals.

Part of my strategy that keeps me motivated is that I celebrate every success, no matter how small. Every time I complete a task in my action plan, I reward myself. I allow myself to feel good about it and I look forward to completing the next task to continue my success.

Positive affirmations help keep me focused on my goals and banish thoughts of self-doubt. I repeat affirmations to myself at least twice each day and again each time I need a boost to my confidence.

Self-reflection also helps me move forward. When I reflect, I visualize living my dreams as if it’s happening in the present. I experience it with all my senses and feel the wonderful emotions of being there. It motivates me to make my dreams a priority.

Lastly, my time management skills bring everything together. I consciously put time in my schedule for making my action plan, working on my tasks every day, and reflecting about myself. Everything works together seamlessly with good time management!

Today, I plan to use my time effectively to keep myself moving forward toward my goal, allowing time for goal planning, completing action steps, and self-reflection.

Self-Reflection Questions:

1. Have I taken the time to create my plan of action steps?

2. Do I do something to work toward my goals every day?

3. What motivates me to do what is necessary to achieve my dreams?