Today’s guest post is courtesy of Richard at Lifestyle Design Unleashed.
When a surgeon goes to do an operation there are a number of pieces of equipment that he or she will most likely need. Scalpels. Clamps. Trays. And so on. If they go in with a skateboard, a banana and a doorbell instead then the surgeon is obviously going to be far less likely to be able to make a success of the operation.
And so it follows with lifestyle design. There are a number of traits which, if you can implement them, will help you greatly in designing and then creating your ideal lifestyle, so I thought it might be beneficial now to run over a few of these to serve as thinking points for you.
I’d love to hear your opinions and feedback on these elements, so I encourage you to leave a comment at the end of this post and also to suggest any traits that you think I’ve missed out.
Motivation To Make Changes
The first key to successful lifestyle design is having the motivation to make changes. I assume that if you’re here now, reading this blog, then that is you. But I’m not just talking about a passing interest in designing your lifestyle—instead I mean a burning motivation that keeps you awake at night dreaming about the possibilities.
I heard a useful phrase recently which went something along the lines of “a dog on the hunt doesn’t stop to scratch its fleas”. In other words there are always going to be small annoyances or things that get in your way while you’re on this lifestyle design journey, but if you have enough motivation and you’re focused on the end game then these minor issues won’t slow you down.
Passion For Life
There are two aspects of lifestyle design really—the negative and the positive. The negative elements are all those things you want to escape from, to avoid, to eliminate. Maybe that’s a boring job. Maybe that’s debt. Maybe it’s something as simple as a cold climate.
But the other side are the positives. What are you going to add into your lifestyle? When you’ve got rid of all those negatives, what positives are you going to add in?
What countries would you like to visit? What new skills would you like to learn? What food would you like to try, what languages do you want to learn? Who do you want to meet and what do you want to achieve?
Too many people know what they don’t want (I want to be able to quit my job) but struggle with what they do want to do. Remember that eliminating your job by setting up a lifestyle business, for example, by its very definition, opens up a huge amount of free time, and you’ve got to do something with it.
It’s worth, then, considering what you will do. Maybe go to some evening classes to see what appeals to you. Maybe go and meet some new people and just get chatting until you start thinking “wow, I’d love to try that”.
Find the things you’re really passionate about in case you aren’t already aware which will create even more motivation to make the necessary changes to your life.
A Vision Of Your Potential Life
I remember listening to an audio tape years ago which included information on an architect. When he designed a house he could visualize it so strongly that apparently he would go out to the plot of land with his clients and walk them through the house in such detail it was like the house was already built.
He could see every aspect of it in his mind’s eye. He joked that it seemed too real to him that sometimes he would knock his elbow on a piece of furniture!
This vision—this ability to see your potential future in your mind’s eye in glorious Technicolor—is yet another step in achieving your goals. After all, if you don’t know what you’re aiming for, how will you know when you get there?
So don’t just make a list of what you want to eliminate and what you want to add into your life. Imagine yourself actually living that life. What does your home look like? Where is it located? What do you look like? What do you do? Who do you know? Make this vision so strong that you too can walk into imaginary furniture.
Debt Free
Debt has a nasty way of taking away options. And the fewer options you have the less freedom and control over your life you have. If you’re up to your eyeballs in debt, then you may well be stuck in your job until you’ve paid it off. You may not be able to afford the vacation you want, or to buy that house you dream of. Debt repayments can eat up a lot of your monthly income, which means you need to earn more.
Without debt though, all those monthly repayments disappear. Depending on your point of view, you either need to earn less (meaning your lifestyle business can support you that much sooner) or you have more expendable income to spend on the things you really want.
In short, getting out of debt is an essential part of the lifestyle design project.
Motivation, Passion, Vision: That’s a great mindset to get going. And debt freedom is absolutely essential. The next would be the “do” part: Don’t overthink it, get moving. If it’s just 30 minutes a day, so be it. If it’s selling all your stuff and moving to Bangkok, so be it, too. But DO what you want to do, start making things real, even if you don’t have everything figured out yet. That would be my recommendation.
I totally agree with you Fabian, especially on this last thing. You don’t need to make all the money in the world that you want to start travelling and you don’t need the best equipement to go hiking in Nepal. When you do start doing these things, even if they are not perfect right from the start, the experience you gain will be much more powerful then the thought of you not being able to do something. It will help you believe in yourself, in what’s possible for you. That’s what the “just get going” part really means.
When you feel stuck in a job that’s not fulfilling you, the prospect of having less stress and more free time to rediscover dormant passions is extremely appealing. But if there’s too much disconnect between the destination and the means of attainment, it’s easy to get off track and succumb to inertia; you get bogged down in the details of the work and lose sight of the goal. In other words, the passion, the vision, has to be an integral part of the journey, not just the eventual destination.
I’ve come to the realisation that, for me anyway, I need a reason that’s bigger than a life of leisure and ease. That’s only fulfilling for a limited time. The greater satisfaction comes from stretching yourself and making change. I think that’s what most people really want their new found freedom to do for them anyway. In other words, the mission is to find passion in your work, not to escape work all together.
Your story about the architect piqued my interest. I’ve long wished for the ability to visualise with that kind of vivid detail. What’s your experience? Can you make a mental picture as clear as day?
Hey Cody – My passion, the force that propels me, is to travel and spend time with my family. However, the two seem like opposing magnetic forces. Since my family, and my friends all have regular 9-5 jobs, who can I travel with?
Thanks,
asia
Finding what we want to do is much harder than finding what we don’t want to do. It took the longest time for me to decide on what I wanted to do and I am still on a journey towards an end game. I saved and saved in anticipation of “buying my freedom” even though I wasn’t sure exactly what I would do. These traits and characteristics are all important in finding the path and one’s own way. Great post Richard!
Sweet site. I came across this searching google for bucket lists.
I think this lifestyle is very attractive, and one that is growing in prominence, especially since 4HWW by Ferriss.
What do you think about people, like myself, who are currently in high cost graduate programs, yet all they want to do is design their own lifestyle?
Like, with 6 figure debts, is it actually feasible to pay that debt off with income sources that can be obtained working online/overseas/on your own?
Graduating with such debt, we basically sell our souls to investment banks, and watch this type of lifestyle disappear.
As mentioned in the article, debt free is very important for this lifestyle.
What do you think Cody? How can one escape such high debt and live this lifestyle?
I love this outlook, especially your point about knowing what you’re moving towards (not just what you’re moving away from).
I’ve seen a friend of mine transform recently because of that switch in attitude. He hated his job and wanted to get away from it, but he had no idea what he’d do instead so he stayed stuck. Since he figured out what he’s passionate about, he’s been a man on a mission and is loving life.
I love the fleas phrase, too. I’ll have to steal that one