ALEXANDRA SWANSON

You are the author of your own life, whether you accept it or not. Independent writers, such as yourself, have the creative freedom to create whatever they want to play out in their pieces. One of the many attractive qualities of writing are the various styles and types — a single text may include more than one writing style! A new chapter can begin whenever you choose.

Since realizing my role as author of my path, I have begun to break down my life into short-stories. For me, this has been the best way to prioritize what changes need to be made and work towards that progress.

Throughout 2019 I have expanded that collection by quite a few works, haha! The [theoretical] writing process of each new addition aides me in furthering my character development. But what we haven’t talked about yet is that all this brainstorming, planning and writing is hard!

I want to share a few tips and tricks I have discovered along the process thus far. I want to help those who truly are looking to restart life on their terms by sharing my personal trials and tribulations.

— THE FIVE-SECOND RULE —
No, not the one having to do with dropping food.

We spend way too much time wondering, what if about so many things in life, when we have the power to figure out what if it did. The next time we want to make a change but something seems to be holding you back, count backwards from five then do it.

I have really been loving listening to podcast series lately, which is how I discovered this concept created by Mel Robbins. The Self-Made CEO, one of my go-to series at the moment, discusses this rule often and argues incredibly valid points. We often hesitate to make a decision which leads to overthinking and overanalyzing the situation. The longer we wait to make a decision, the less authentic that final decision becomes. When we make a decision out of fear (over thinking, over analyzing, over complicating, etc) we are not necessarily making the best choice for ourselves; we are making the choice which is most comfortable for us.

How does it work?
When you are ready to make a change but do not have the motivation in the moment, countdown from five then do it.
Go read. Go to the gym. Dust your room. Take a walk.
Whatever it may be, do it.

Remember it is okay to fail. Doing something when you do not feel the motivation is really difficult. Use the failure to better yourself for next time.
Tomorrow morning, you are going to wake up early. Count down then get out of bed and take on the day!

— SIGNAL CHANGE —
“You taught others how to treat you. Reteach them.” – Costar Astrology

Generally speaking, most people have to be told to do things. This is why call to action buttons (email, phone, website) are so important. They tell people what to do next! New York best-selling author, Donald Miller, stresses this in his book “Building a StoryBrand”.

How does it work?
If you want other people to understand you are rebranding yourself, you must make it simple and clear. I have found being direct with close people in my life to be most helpful because it adds the aspect of accountability.

For example, if you tell your roommate you are going to exercise four times a week but you do not, your roommate is likely to ask you about the goal you mentioned earlier in the week. I am a self-motivated individual, however, I do find having someone hold me accountable for my goals to be a major help. Especially at the beginning of your journey!

— CONSISTENCY IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN GOING HARD —
Consistency = Change

It doesn’t matter if you work your butt off in the gym on Monday morning if it only happens once that week. I’m sorry, but it’s true. You will see more results if you work moderately for 20 minutes each day, than if you work yourself to death for an hour and a half once a week.

I have found implementing routines to be helpful in establishing consistency! Planning out my day the night before is what I found to be the best for optimizing my time. Another plus to implementing changes into your routine is the 21/90 rule.

How does it work?
If you commit to a goal for 21 days it will become a habit. Continuing that habit for 90 (total) days will integrate it into your lifestyle.
Remember failure is not worth beating yourself up over. Grow from it.
Realize your faults and weaknesses, embrace them then improve.

I hope these three tips help you along your journey! I have found these to be the most important insights I’ve yet to discover when it comes to beginning a new chapter of life. If you’re new here or missed my past blog about lessons I’ve learned throughout life so far and ways in which I have started over, you can check it out here! If you have any tips or tricks please share in the comments below!

As always, thank you for reading. I appreciate each moment spent on my work.

Talk to y’all soon,
Alex