Sarah Marinos of Body & Soul interviews Muffy:
Sometimes we know and feel that something in our life isn’t right but we find it too overwhelming to make changes,” says Muffy Churches, success coach and author of Coach Yourself.
She has created these seven steps for reaching the pinnacle of your life experience.
Do a Reality Check
“Scan your life. Think of it as taking your car in for a service. Simply ask yourself what’s feeling good and what isn’t.”
Try this: Choose the thing that will make the biggest difference and work on that first.
Picture It
“This step clarifies what your ideal is – what are you doing in that ideal world of yours? Build a clear picture of what you want.”
Try this: Imagine six months into the future: where you are, who is with you, how you feel, what you can see and what you’re thinking. Then write a detailed vision statement.
Raise Your Awareness
“We feel things that aren’t comfortable but we endure those feelings. Become aware of self-limiting thoughts so you can do something about them.”
Try this: Identify your personal myth – the story you live by that colours your perceptions about yourself and what’s possible.
Weigh Up Your Options
“People feel the life they have is what they’ve been given. Think about the options at your disposal – ‘What could I do to make this change happen?’ This is the strategic planning phase.”
Try this: Counter self-defeating thoughts with positive statements. Don’t think, “I’m afraid I’ll be alone”. Think, “I’ll be fine on my own”.
Commit To Change
“A lot of us don’t persist at making change happen. That inner voice says, ‘I can’t’. Changing our mindset is also difficult and we have to persist to change that thought pattern.”
Try this: Repeat new, positive thoughts to yourself in the shower and in the car.
Celebrate Success
“Acknowledge small wins and use them as motivation for the next change. [It’s] proof that things can work.”
Try this: List how things have changed, what actions you took, how your feelings are and new strengths you’ve identified.
Practise Mind Patrol
“You’ve made a change but you can slide backwards, and you need to keep up the good work. Think back over your week. Did that inner voice stop you saying or doing something?”
Try this: Stay on “mind patrol” so you can stop negative, anxious or angry thinking in its tracks. Work out what’s behind the unhelpful thoughts, note it down and write the positive flip-side of those thoughts.
