It’s hard to introduce new items, ideas, people, or skills into your life if you don’t have space for them. I often find that people looking to hire me as a coach feel overwhelmed by what they already have on their plates, and as much as they want to grow and gain the skills they are looking for, they haven’t made space to do so. Our lives are too cluttered and overflowing with things, obligations, and people that don’t provide enough value to be worth the time and space they require.
Adding more to your life requires making space. That space can be physical or psychological.
To have a bigger life, it’s also necessary to downsize.
Consider these ideas:
1. Decide what you want. This is an essential first step for many things in life. Whether you’re looking for your perfect career or a new car, it’s important to know what you want to have any hope of finding it - the details matter.
What is it you want to add to your life? Once you answer that question, you can begin figuring out how to make the necessary accommodations.
What’s most important to you? It’s easier to find the enthusiasm to create room in your life for the things that excite you the most. What excites you?
2. What’s in the way? Think about what you want and consider the obstacles to acquiring or achieving it. Do you need more room in your garage? More free time? Fewer distractions? A coach or an accountability partner?
Ask yourself why the thing you want isn’t already in your life.
3. Clear out the physical barriers. Perhaps you need to make room in your closet for a new wardrobe. Or you need to build a shed for that magnificent riding lawn mower you’ve been eyeing for years. Maybe you are over the weight limit to go skydiving. You might live in the wrong place to climb mountains daily.
Identify the physical barriers in your life and address them.
4. Clear out the psychological barriers. Are you brave enough? Are you knowledgeable enough? Is your attitude in the way? Do you lack hope or optimism? Do you have the support you need to stay in the mindset to accomplish your goal?
Psychological barriers limit the amount of space we have to accommodate new items, experiences, and people. Regardless of your goals or what you want to add to your life, your brain is always a more significant obstacle than you think
When you think about having a bigger life, do you feel anything but enthusiasm? If you do, you have some work to do. The more resistance you feel, the more challenging it will be.
5. Free up your time. One area where we could all use a little more breathing room is time, especially free time.
Take a few days and record how you spend each minute of your day. Be detailed. Notice how much time you’re wasting or doing something that you don’t want to do or adds no value to your life.
List your non-essential activities, which may include going to the movies, surfing the internet, spending time with friends, watching TV.
Reduce the time spent on non-essential activities and increase quality. Maybe you watch 10 TV shows but only really love two of them. Perhaps one great movie a month is nearly as good as five so-so movies.
Look for ways to reduce the amount of time you spend on tasks that aren’t helping you take steps to achieve your goals. Try to be more efficient with the things you must do or like to do.
If you want more in your life, you need to make space for it. Free up the physical and psychological space for new things in your life. It’s an essential first step.