Career Coaching : What Do You Want Your Life To Look Like?

Before you start thinking about your ideal work, dream job, new career, the very first step you need to take is to describe your ideal life.

Ask yourself the following questions :

"What do I want my life to look like?"

“How would I like to spend my days?”

“What would my ideal life be like?“

It is extremely important to answer these questions before you evaluate various work options. For example, you might want to open a Bed&Breakfast but if you don’t like dealing with people, opening a B&B is a bad choice. If you love staying at home, working in an office where you need to spend 40 hours a week won’t make you happy. You need to make sure that the work you will choose fits into your ideal life.

Find a quiet place where you won't be disturbed. Relax your body and mind. Take as much time as you need to write down your answers. Make sure to write with a sense of excitement and passion! If you don’t like writing, you can invite your friends over and describe your ideal life to them (Ask them to give you lots of encouragement!).

Don’t be held back for a moment by thoughts like “It’s not possible” ! Don’t censor; just let it flow. Imagine you are living each day to the fullest !

Here are some ideas to prompt you:
- Where do you see yourself living ? In a big city/small town/countryside ? Are you living in a warmer/colder climate ? Another city ? Another country ?
- What time do you get up in the morning ?
- Are you living on your own or with someone ? How many people are you living with ? Who are they ? How much time are you spending with them ?
- Do you have an active social life ?
- Do you want to be based in one place or travel ? How much travelling would you like to be doing ?
- Do you want to spend most of your time outside or do you prefer to stay at home ?
- Imagine it is a Tuesday in a year’s time. What are you doing from the moment you get up to the moment you go to bed ?
- What do you want to experience day to day ?

Create a multi-media picture of each aspect of your life and ask yourself, “Do I love what I see/hear/feel ?”

If not, you might be holding yourself back with limiting thoughts. Remove all limits and allow yourself to dream about the kind of life you want to live. Now, go back and do the same exercise. Do it again and again until you feel satisfied, inspired and excited about your life !

Only after you finish this exercise with a clear vision of what you want your life to look like, you can take the next steps to find your ideal work, the work that will allow you to have the life you really want.