Focus On The Positive with Kelsey Eaton
I spent my entire life preparing for a management role in the non-profit sector. Every job, every volunteer opportunity, every contact, and my college degree was intentionally selected to work my way up to the top in a leadership role with an international non-profit. After spending two years in Peace Corps Paraguay, I was selected to be the In-Country Director of an international non-profit in India that prevented child trafficking via female empowerment. All those years of focus made my dream life come true. I loved living in India, I felt more alive than ever before but little did I know that I ended up in a toxic work environment that eventually led me to get an MRI as a result of my entire left arm going numb as a physical reaction to the extreme amount of stress. This should have been my wake up call, but how could I give up on my decade long dream to work at an Indian non-profit. I pushed myself to the extreme and tried everything I can to find work-life balance like massages, journaling, meditation, eating well, spending time with friends, exercising. None of it worked, the work problems amplified and I had a deep feeling inside that I needed to return home.
So with a heavy heart and on my final thread, I completed my contract, packed my bags, and returned home after four years of working abroad without any clear direction of what was next. I was depressed and felt like I had given up on my dreams. After months of applying to jobs to no avail, I realized that I now had an opportunity to start fresh and truly create a life on my terms. So I thought about what my dream life would look like. How I’d want to live day-to-day, who I’d want to work for/with, what I’d want to do, the type of environment I want to be a part of, the amount of money I want to make, and how my values would fit into my dream life.
And so I unleashed my entrepreneurial spirit. I published my first children’s book, launched a digital design business, became a certified life coach, and yoga teacher, and now am a business mentor for women who share my desire to be free to live a life on our terms. I believe the main factor that catapulted me to success was clarity on exactly what I wanted and taking small daily action steps to help me get there that were focused on the present moment, positive, and specific to my vision.
One of the best ways to catapult yourself into your dream life is to be crystal clear on what you want and a positive mindset to help get you there. I’d like to share three important questions to ask yourself to get clear on your dreams paired with ways you can take daily action steps to make them come true.
Journal on the following questions:
1. What would you do if you didn't need money? ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
2. What would you do if you didn't care what people think? ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
3. What would you do if you didn't want to make a name for yourself?
Accordingly, these questions will help you get clear on what you want to create in your life. Next, we will focus on bringing this vision to life with a positive mindset. The key to having a positive mindset is focused on small daily action steps to make progress and see results.
Here are some ways you can focus on having a positive mindset aligned with your current vision:
1. Limiting Beliefs - Write down all of the limiting beliefs you have about why this vision isn’t possible for you right now. This includes beliefs you hold about yourself, fears you have about what others will think or say about it, and societal norms that may hold you back. Take time to actually understand how all of these limiting beliefs are not true. You have the capability to create whatever life you want to have, all that’s required is the decision to take action.
2. Affirmations - Create affirmations based on the opposite of your limiting beliefs. You want to make sure they’re written in the present tense focused on the outcome of your vision. Repeat your affirmation to yourself throughout the day, set alarms on your phone, and if you’re really into this then write it down 100x for 21 days. For example, many people told me that making money as a yoga teacher would be a struggle, this is a limiting belief that I had picked up on, and believed to be true. I released this belief and replaced it with a new belief and affirmation, “I’m a high earning life coach and yoga teacher for women worldwide”.
3. Take inspired action - When you’re solely focused on your vision and all the positivity that comes with it, you’ll begin to get more and more ideas about how to make it happen. You’ll start to connect with the right people, feel inspired to share an idea with someone that catapults you in the direction of your dream life. The key here is to stay open to whatever guidance comes your way and tune out any beliefs that keep you where you’re at right now.
4. Gratitude - If you ever feel uninspired or reach a point of negativity (which we all do), the easiest way to shift back to positivity and focusing on your vision is by listing out everything you’re grateful for, reviewing your past gratitude list, and feeling appreciative for all the progress you have made. This awareness will help you immediately shift back to what feels good and opens you up to abundance.
These steps are a good foundation for creating a life on your terms and always remember, you’re the only one who will be with you your entire life so make sure it’s a life worth living.
- Kelsey M. Eaton
FOTP Note: Kelsey is the creator of the Turn Your Life On program.
