Creating The Life We Desire
January 11, 2026
With a new year comes a fresh opportunity to re-evaluate what we really want in life. Whether our goal is finding time for the things we truly love, getting in better shape, eating healthier, learning a new skill, fortifying our peace or simply becoming more organized, the first step to victory is examining what we do daily that sabotages those visions.
This can be as simple as making a list of our goals, making another list of the things we do every day, then compare the lists and adjust accordingly. But usually it's a bit more complex than that since our intrinsic habits, patterns and beliefs tend to complicate matters.
Self-sabotage is when we say we want something and then go about making sure it doesn't happen.~Alyce Cornyn-Selby
Stumbling Blocks To Our Success
- Procrastination
- Resisting change
- Instant gratification
- Avoiding introspection
- Trying to people please
- Not taking responsibility
- Giving up before starting
- Believing success is too hard
- Choosing coping over healing
- Choosing comfort over challenge
- Using unhealthy habits as rewards
- Believing self-defeating inner dialog
- Giving in to impulses and distractions
- Making excuses or justifying behavior
- Focusing on the past instead of the present
These self-sabotaging practices can imprison us, making us the biggest obstacle to our very own dreams. But the good news is, we have the key to free ourselves. When we swap these undermining patterns for empowering ones, we begin to shift the entire trajectory of our lives.
In this day and age, when obligations, distractions and hectic schedules are a regular part of our daily experience, our goals can get lost in the shuffle and before we know it, we're living a life very different from the one we envisioned. To prevent this type of derailment, we must remember to systematically ask ourselves,
Does this support my aspirations and the life I desire to create?If the answer is no, then conscious decisions need to be made.
If you want something you've never had, you've got to do something you've never done.~Thomas Jefferson
Reaching our goals requires stepping out of our comfort zones and shaking up our daily routines. This might mean making healthier choices by eliminating fast-foods, commiting 30 minutes a day to exercise or taking time to rejuvenate ourselves. No matter what our objectives are, time management is a huge piece of the puzzle. Rather than wasting time scrolling social media or watching television, we can use those precious moments to organize our spaces, take a class, learn a new skill or connect more deeply with those we care about.
The quality of our lives is always equal to the quality of our ways, so it's important to consistently reevaluate our actions, celebrate or gains and tweak what isn't working. Remember, we can keep dreaming about the life we want for ourselves, or we can begin making choices that move us closer to that reality. Every single decision we make has an impact that influences an outcome. In other words, what we do (and don't do) makes a difference, and we must make clear what that difference is gonna be.