I’m a practical lady. Reality is my grounding. I believe work is necessary to reach big goals. Pragmatic is my middle name.
But I also deeply believe that anything IS possible. I do believe in miracles.
Sure, miracles like world peace or winning the lottery seem out of our reach. So, we’re going to keep things small today. We’re going to focus on the very small miracles you’ve been looking for lately.
Small miracles like getting six — eight hours of restful sleep, eating a balanced diet for an entire week or going outside for a walk in the woods between conference calls. Maybe getting through your emails would feel like a miracle, or making it home in time to eat dinner with your family. Work out more, eat better, shut down earlier, work less, sleep more, reduce stress. Nail that presentation, get that promotion, say ‘no’ to that new project, travel less. Small miracles in your life.
Take a moment and focus on one very small miracle you’d like to see happen to you in the near future.
Now, write that miracle down on a piece of paper.
Look at what you wrote and picture all the wonderful things that would happen in your life with this one small miracle. Spend a moment here with your thoughts, your dreams, your desires.
OK, let’s get practical. Let’s go get that miracle!
Practically speaking, everything we do in life is a series of ideas, decisions and actions. This series of events is exactly how you got to where you are today. You had an idea about a job that you wanted, the size of the family you wanted, or the place you wanted to live. You made decisions — where you went to school, who you dated, how much money you wanted to make. Then you took actions. You studied hard, you interviewed well, you said yes to your partner, and you bought/rented your home.
You’ve probably already created many miracles in your life through your ideas, decisions and actions. Your current role/level/contribution at work, your kids/dog/partner, your home/vehicle/vacation adventures. Miracle. Miracle. Miracle.
Take a moment and look back at that piece of paper where you wrote your desired small miracle.
This is how you start — with your idea.
OK, we’re making progress! On to decision making time.
Make one decision that will move you closer to that miracle. For example, if your small miracle is to finally get seven hours of restful sleep, decide what day of the week you are going to attempt this feat. Let’s chose Thursday — because Thursday and Friday are work days, so you are testing yourself on the days when it is hardest to sleep. Friday is always a bit of an easier work day, being that it’s the day before the weekend, so while you’re testing yourself, you aren’t jumping in on a Tuesday or anything.
If your small miracle is to eat better, maybe your decision is to bring lunch to work one day a week. Or, eat a great breakfast every day.
Let’s try a harder one. Your small miracle is to work less at night before bed (which, by the way, will help with your sleep miracle!). Decision? Similar to sleeping, pick one night during the work week that you will not open your computer after dinner.
Write your decision down underneath your miracle/idea.
Now the hard part. Take action.
This is where most of us get all messed up. We have great ideas, make the decision to move forward, have great intentions, and then blammo. Nothing.
Practically speaking — you need to take action to get anywhere.
But actions don’t have to be huge statements. They can be very small, very easy, very ‘no big deal’. Remember, these are small miracles we are talking about. And, if you look back at your decision, I suspect it also is pretty narrow. So there’s no reason our actions need to be gigantic. Mini actions will suffice.
Baby steps are great, as long as they move us forward.
OK, one action. Here’s a few ideas:
• Thursday night, after dinner, have a cup of chamomile tea. Then, go to bed at 10pm. Read a few pages of a good book. Do a little deep breathing.
• Get Greek yogurt and berries at the store and have them in your fridge for an easy healthy breakfast.
• Thursday just before dinner, shut your computer OFF. (Don’t just close the top, shut the whole thing down).
• Schedule forty-five minutes in your calendar for next week (on a day where the weather looks delicious), and go for a walk.
Write that action down under your decision.
Now, look at your piece of paper. You have now created a practical plan for achieving your small miracle.
All that’s left is to DO IT.
After all, if you want to win the lottery, you have to buy a ticket!
If you do nothing else…
Follow the steps above and see your small miracle become a reality.
Originally published at www.thehealthyleader.com on November 6, 2015.
Originally published at medium.com