It’s easy to get caught up in other people’s priorities, going through the motions of life and then one day start to question things. Why do I never seem to have time to prioritise my own health?

Perhaps things like good sleep, exercising, eating well start to fall by the wayside. Or maybe you feel like you’ve ticked a lot of the boxes about what you thought should bring you happiness and success in life, but you still feel like you’re not there yet?

The great thing is, it’s never too late to make changes in your life. If the pain of where you are at right now, is greater than your pain of staying the same, you are ready for change.

Here’s 5 ways to improve your life, in just one year from now.

1. Get honest with yourself, what needs to change?

At some point you have to be honest about the gap between the life you want to live, and the life you are currently living. What are your current daily habits that are creating your current lifestyle? Are you making your health a side hustle? If you look forward to one year from now and imagine your life is the best it’s ever been as a result of your intentional choices, what choices would you have to make today to make this best life a reality?

If your habits are causing the gap to widen between where you are and where you want to be, then do something about it.

“Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become” – James Clear

2. Begin with the end in mind

Do you know the purpose of your life? If you don’t know your unique purpose and the direction of your own life, how can you make decisions today that lead you in that direction?

You were not born into this world just to pay bills, provide for your family, go to work 5 of 7 days a week doing something that doesn’t bring you joy or fulfilment. You were born with unique skills and talents and its life’s greatest adventure to discover what these are and share them with the world (see this blog here on getting clarity of your life’s purpose).

“If one does not know to which port one is sailing, no wind is favourable” - Seneca

3. Have a bias toward action

Life is short – and we are all going to die, but most of us forget this! It might seem a bit gloomy to say this, but many wise yogis have taught that appreciating the fragility of life, in fact motivates us to truly live, to take bold action in the direction of our desired life.

Overthinking is the death of all great ideas and opportunities. You don’t have to have it all figured out in order to move forward. The clarity you seek will come from the action that you take. Do the work that you are currently avoiding and get the results that you want. The only real failure in life, is never tying to take action on the things that matter most to you.

“You only need to know the direction, not the destination. The direction is enough to make the next choice” - James Clear

4. You will suck at most things in the beginning

The harsh reality is that when you commit to doing something with your life, you will face inevitable setbacks and failures. However, you will gain much wisdom and strength if you choose to respond with a growth mindset. We take on great challenges, stumble, get our knees dirty, and try all over again and again despite others looking over their shoulder at you thinking you might be crazy (!).

With the right mindset, failure is not diminishing, but strength building. We come out the other side with new knowledge, experience, capabilities and confidence. It’s better to take action, and fall over, than never take action and have regrets.

“With consistency, persistence, and patience anything can become possible. Extraordinary results come from repeating ordinary actions over and over” – Alexander Ong.

5. Simplify your life

Once you know what your purpose is, what’s important to you, start to let go of what’s not. One of the best ways to advance your life, is to simplify it. When we have less mental, physical and digital clutter in our life, we pave the way for clearer thinking and more focused action.

If you want your life to change, you must make space for it to happen.

“Phone addiction, poor diet and a sedentary lifestyle is NOT ADHD. You are supposed to feel like shit and struggle to focus on anything meaningful living like this. It’s natural. Change that first.” Dr. Roger Mcfillin, psychologist

Learn more at one of the upcoming events with Jo Jarden, Heart and Mind Yoga:

Choose your date! October or November. $155 includes lunch. No yoga experience required. Click the image to learn more and to book

$155 for the 4 weeks. No yoga experience required. Click the image to learn more and to book

Jo Jarden is a personal trainer, yoga teacher, and the founder of Heart and Mind Yoga studio 54 Holmwood Road, Merivale, Christchurch. She has 12 year's experience as personal trainer, yoga teacher, and workshop facilitator including working with:

Business executives
Gyms, group yoga & fitness classes
Farmers and rural settings
Workplace retreats, events, and conferences

Her approach combines both body and mind practices to help people boost their health and general feelings of positivity. She utilises the combination of ancient yoga wisdom and wellbeing science techniques to help people release tension and grow their inner strengths.

Qualifications include:

Certified Yoga Teacher Santosha Yoga Institute, Registered Australian Yoga Alliance 2017
Certificate in Advanced Personal Training, Fit College New Zealand, 2016
Bachelor of Science with Honours Public Health. University of Canterbury, New Zealand 2006
Bachelor of Arts Mass Communication and Psychology. University of Canterbury, New Zealand 2005

5 ways to improve your life in one year from now