Many of us would like to make changes to our lives, and it’s never too late. This month, Aurora EAP offers some advice on how to “rewrite your life”:

Permit yourself to be a beginner. Accept that as you explore new possibilities you will have many stops and starts. Rather than measuring your progress, adapt an attitude of curiosity.

Understand that it is normal to feel anxious about making a change. Some of what you will experience as fear, however, is probably excitement. Fear and anticipation create the same physiological responses in us, and it is often hard to distinguish one from the other.

Recognize the benefits of already having some life experience. Your past will allow you to better appreciate your future, and will put your new life into a more realistic context.

Take some time to answer the following questions, and see what possibilities emerge from your answers:

• What aspects of your current job &/or life circumstance do you enjoy?
• What would others say you do naturally and well?
• What do you love doing in your free time?
• What cause(s) do you feel strongly about?
• How would you like to be remembered?
• Which life accomplishments (starting with early childhood) have meant the most to you?
• What would you choose to do if you were not concerned about money and time?

If you have been trying to make substantial changes for a long time without success, another good resource is the book Your Own Worst Enemy: Breaking the Habit of Adult Underachievement, by Kenneth Christian. Good luck!

Photo by Sharon Mollerus.