During this time of year everyone becomes obsessed with committing to New Year resolutions.
We all know these resolutions won’t last. They end up becoming false promises, and are basically the personification of self delusion.
To be succinct: It’s all complete bullshit.
Let me tell you a truth; you don’t need New Year resolutions, you need to Revolutionize your life.

What you need is change. Not change for the “New year ahead,” that’s stupid, and will get you as far as March (if you’re lucky), before you fuck up.
The change I’m talking about is to your life.
It’s not for this year, it’s for EVERY year ahead.
As the very wise Jim Rohn said

You cannot change your destination overnight, but you can change your direction overnight.

So if you’re serious, I mean REALLY serious about changing your life — then I’ve listed some simple tips below to get you on the right track. If you use them, if you stay consistent, you’ll start the process of change, and I GUARANTEE you’ll see amazing results in your life.
Or, you can choose to stick to your “resolutions,” and sign yourself up for failure.
Your choice.

• Spend less time on social media — As much fun as it is to be LMFAO at haters/ connecting with friends/ making new contacts/ seeing what’s happening in the world, I find that social media can be VERY time consuming. And it steals time sneakily, in tiny increments, that add up. It’s so time consuming in fact, that some successful people choose not to even have a Facebook or Twitter account. I’m not suggesting you close your accounts down, but I do suggest that you keep tabs on how much time you’re spending tweeting, posting to FB etc when you could instead be working toward your goals.

• Apply the ten years test – On your journey, you’re going to run into problems that might seem like disasters. It happens to everyone, and it’s important that you don’t freak out! Instead, ask yourself “Will this problem matter in ten days? In ten months? In ten years?” I’m sure when you apply this test to most of your problems, the resounding answer you’ll get back from yourself is “Probably not.” So, if a problem isn’t going to matter in ten years, why are you stressing about it? It’s not worth it. Stop. Now.

• Move more – Walking is great for not just your health, but also for your creativity. It’s been proven that physical activity stimulates the creative areas of the brain. As walking isn’t strenuous, it allows you to capitalize on the cerebral benefits of physical stimulation, while being in a state where you’re able to process your thoughts logically (In English: you’re not gasping for breath and you can think)

• Know your why – It’s a such a great question that isn’t asked enough. Ask yourself “Why am I doing this?” Figure out your why, and that’ll be the fuel for your motivation. Whether it’s supporting your family, or making an impact on the world — knowing your ‘why,’ is critical to taking your work to the next level. It will help you to stick to things, and not quit.

• Map out your destination – If you don’t even know where you’re headed, how will you create the plan on how to get there? Don’t be a headless chicken (like most people), instead set your destination first, and then set sail.

• Listen, before speaking – Seek to understand first, and respond second. How can you make an intelligent remark on something if you haven’t taken the time to observe what’s happening first? You have two ears, and only one mouth. There’s a reason for that. Think about it…

• Understand your strengths, and amplify them – You’ll be naturally talented in certain areas, or you’ll have practiced a skill enough to become an expert at it. Focus your energy on amplifying your strengths, rather than trying to be mediocre at every-fucking-thing. Better to be an expert at a few things, than a mediocre jack of all trades.

• Make sure you visualize your success – Imagine three groups of basketball players. The first group would practice shooting free throws for twenty minutes a day. The second group wouldn’t practice free throws but would visualize themselves making free throws. The third group would not practice or visualize at all. The results? There was a significant improvement in the second group. In fact, they were almost as good as the first group. By the way, this is a real experiment that was conducted by Australian Psychologist Alan Richardson. So if you want to get that new job, then imagine yourself prepping for the interview, nailing it, and signing the job offer. Visualize what you want your future to be.

• Make your successes into celebrations – The journey to your goal may be a long or short one, but make sure you take the time to celebrate your progress along the way. Treat yourself to a nice dinner. Congratulate your teammates (if you have them). Strike a fucking gong, do a fist pump, yell out from the rooftops, it’s doesn’t matter; what’s important is that you celebrate every little success.

• Don’t get distracted – I get it, we all work with/ meet jerks, bitches, assholes, bastards [INSERT EXPLETIVE HERE] at some point in our careers, or in our lives in general. Who cares? Don’t let them get to you. There’s no need to say anything bad about them. If anything, try to find humor in it, learn from it and move on. You’ve got better things to focus on. Like being the most epic version of yourself that you can be. While they drown in negativity, you’re on your way to success!

• Focus on the 80/20 rule – 20% of your clients will usually generate 80% of the return. Focus your energy on the work and people that matter the most.

• Do what you love – Life’s short. Do you really want to spend your life working at a job that you hate? Didn’t think so. Do what you love. And if you don’t know what you love, wtf are you doing reading this article? Go find what you love. NOW!

• Be thankful for your champions – Along the way, you will find people that genuinely believe in you, and your mission. They will cheer you on. Be thankful for them. Value them. These people are gold. Oh, and don’t be a selfish idiot, make sure to genuinely belief in their dreams too. Being reciprocal, is the action of kings.

• Be thankful for your naysayers – On this same journey, you’ll also find people who doubt you every step of the way. Be thankful for them too. Only this time, use their doubt and negativity, as your source of motivation. I was once told that my writing was “Unimaginative,” by an industry professional that I actually respected. I’ve received many rejection letters from publishing houses and studios. In fact, I’ve been rejected more times than I can remember. I even get daily hate from wannabe writers that spend more time finding ways to hate me, than they do working on their own career (funny how they can’t seem to make a full-time career out of their own writing. Hmm, what a mystery… Lol). Despite all this, I’m thankful for my naysayers. In fact, I love them! I’m serious. The negativity they throw at me, is like fuel; fuel that I use to propel myself forward. Fuel that keeps me motivated, and on track. It’s this fuel, that has put me in a position where writing is my full-time career. Without my naysayers, I would be lost. So thanks for the motivation 😉 Put succinctly; use your naysayers as stepping stones to success.

• Don’t live someone else’s blueprint for life – Learn to build your own values, passions, opinions, and personality. You are not anyone else. You’re completely unique, and awesome in your own way. This is your life. Own it. If you don’t take charge of your life, someone else will do it for you.

• Focus on the present – Stop regretting the past. Stop worrying about the future. Focus on the present. Focus on the NOW. Feel the sun on your face. Feel the wind on your back. Hear the wind as it blows the tree branches. Dig your toes into the sand. Listen when people talk. Look at things this way… If you keep reading the same chapter of a book, over and over again, how will you finish the book? To move forward, stop thinking about the past. Be in the now.

• Embrace change – You need to get comfortable with this simple idea: the only thing constant is change. Instead of fearing it, embrace it.

• Silence can be beautiful – You don’t always have to fill up silence with words. Sometimes there is beauty in being silent.

• It’s ok to not know what to say – Let’s face it, we don’t always have the right answer (not even me…) so instead of rushing to answer, tell the person that you need time to think about things further, maybe even say “Let me think about that.” This shows that you’re being thoughtful, and also gives you something to respond with. It’s better to act, than to react.

• Realize that most people don’t give a fuck about you — Yup, I’m sorry but you need to grow-the-fuck-up and realize that people’s lives don’t revolve around you. So stop worrying about what other people think of you. Most of them don’t even really care that much. Instead, focus on being the best possible version of yourself.

• Realize that there are a few people in the world that really deeply care about you — Keep those people close to you in life. They’re the ones that can make your life amazing. They’re the ones that will stick with you through the good, and the bad. These people are treasures, and you must value them.

• Respect yourself – Positive reinforcement can help you maintain an upbeat mood even in the worst of times. Treat yourself well. How can others respect you, if you don’t respect yourself…

• Promise only on what you KNOW you can deliver – Reliability goes a long way. A ton of people over promise, and under deliver. Don’t be that person.

• Be fearless – Fear is just a feeling. Learn to take it head on. Have a bias towards action and be fearless. You’re not your feelings, don’t forget that.

• Smile at people – Not like an idiot, or placating loser. I mean genuinely smile. It makes you happier. It’s contagious. It lowers stress and anxiety. It strengthens your immune system. It makes you seem more competent. It makes your look trustworthy. It can even be an effective management technique. And yes, every single of these has been proven by a study. Every. Single. One. By the way, it costs you nothing. So find something (there’s got to be something, so don’t say you can’t think of anything), to smile about, and fucking do it. Now.

• Experiences are better than things – What you should value are experiences. A simple dinner with a loved one, talking about life. A vacation with your spouse to a place you’ve always wanted to travel. A long talk with friends over a warm fire on a cold winter night. Working late night with your teammates to build a badass startup. These are the moments you’ll remember. Live more!

• Don’t compare yourself to others – Just focus on being the best possible version of yourself.

• Love yourself, to love others – Before you fall in love with anyone else, make sure you’re in a good place. Learn to love yourself, including all of your awesomeness and your flaws. The more comfortable you are with yourself, the better you can love someone else.

• Your words matter – The words you choose have power. Version 1: “We have a problem with our project.” Version 2: “We have an opportunity to fix things on this project.” I don’t know about you, but I feel a hell of a lot better hearing version 2. What about you?

• Learn to let go – Sometimes you can’t fix things. Let it go.

• Everyone has a story – Maybe someone was an asshole to you today. That sucks. But what if you found out it’s because they just learned about a tragedy in their family? It changes everything doesn’t it? Just remember, everyone has their own story to tell. I’m not saying it excuses their behavior, I’m simply saying that it’s best not to take things so fucking personal. Capiche?

• Love – When all is said and done, all that you’ll really remember are the amazing people you’ve connected with and helped along the way. Love your friends. Love your family. Love the people you date. Love is all that matters. Love more. Or as 50 Cent says

And you should love it, way more then you hate it.

So there’s a pretty solid list of things to start your new life (not just year) with. Do them, they’ll be a game-changer, I promise.

Feel free to email me if you find yourself hungry for more information.