Makeover Your Life

Life Coach and Hay House Author, Louise Presley-Turner offers tips on clearing the clutter and spring cleaning our lives.

Get your priorities straight

Do you find yourself saying ‘YES’ when you know you ought to really be saying ‘NO’? Do you find yourself organising your best friend’s hen do, whilst spending your evenings sewing millions of sequins on to 29 outfits for the school play? It’s time to put some value on yourself and do more of the things you love. Re-establish your boundaries personally and professionally and identify what is acceptable to you and what’s not.

• Make a list of what your boundaries are in each area of your life, that way you’ll clearly know when they are being breached.
• Write a list of all the things you enjoy. Past, present and things you’d still like to try or do. It might be trying a new hobby, walking in nature or just simply reading a book. Make your list as long as you can.
• Pin your list on your fridge door or bathroom mirror as a reminder.
• Each week pick at least one thing off your list and do it! See what difference it makes to your life – I think you might be surprised.

Improve your relationship

All couples enter in to a relationship or marriage with the expectation that their passion will last for ever. In the beginning of any relationship, it’s all very exhilarating and fun. But as time goes by, couples settle into the daily routine of cooking, cleaning, mowing the lawn, grocery shopping and raising the kids and you become less of a priority to each other.

• Ensure you communicate every day, just five minutes! Make time to really listen to what each other is saying.
• Respect your partner even when you disagree. Never belittle your partner especially when the kids or other people are around.
• Get Physical. A sure sign that your relationship has gone off the boil is when you don’t touch each other anymore. Avoid the vicious cycle and break the routine, make your physical relationship a priority. Hold hands in public, offer lots of hugs and kiss often.
• Say ‘I love you’. This one is so simple and doesn’t require any effort at all, but it has the power to radically change the mood in an instant. Say I love you and say it often!

Restore your health

Have you got health issues that you’ve been putting up with for months or even years? Or have you been neglecting your diet or physical fitness? It’s time to stop procrastinating and sort it out!

• Book a doctor’s appointment and do it today!
• Arrange to see a chiropractor, nutritionist or specialist.
• Hire a personal trainer; there is no doubt that accountability works!
• Join a slimming club. Having support from others who are trying to shed the pounds can make the world of difference to your motivation.
• Visit a spa or book a relaxing weekend away to recharge your batteries – do this at least twice this year, if you can.

Sort your clutter

It might sound obvious but as the saying goes: ‘clear house equals a clear mind’. If you’re consistently looking at unfinished DIY or have a cascade of crumpled clothes fall on your head each time you open the wardrobe doors, then it’s only going to add to your stress levels.

• Make a list of all those niggling jobs you need to do that you’ve been putting off, from the broken loo seat to the mountain of paper work in your office and pin your list on the fridge door! List everything you can think of - leave nothing out!
• Think, who can help you work through your list… a family member, an odd-job-man, the kids? Delegate tasks where you can.
• Have a car boot sale. What is hanging around in your loft, cupboards or garage that you can sell? What’s rubbish to you may be someone else’s treasure.
• Ensure you cross at least three items of your list each week.

Fix your finances

We all know that money plays a huge role in our lives and can cause no end of tension, worry and anxiety. Having your money in check really does lead to a less stressful and harmonious existence.

• Create or find a budget sheet that’s simple and easy to use – nothing too complicated or you simple won’t use it!
• Get a copy of your last bank statement and do a quick analysis. Mark each item either ‘A’ ‘B’ or ‘C’. ‘A’s’ are essential items such as your mortgage, gas bill, water rates: things that absolutely must be paid. ‘B’ items are things like mobile phone bills, Sky TV, services which are a necessity, but not crucial. And finally, ‘C’ items are luxuries such as DVD’s, shoes, takeaways; basically things that are nice to have. Doing this, will give you a clearer picture of where your money is going.
• Look at the ‘C’ items on your statement analysis; what are you wasting money on? Write a list of three ways you can cut back this week.
• Now look at your ‘A’ and ‘B’ items and start looking into where savings can be made. Look at your service providers to make sure you’re getting the best deal on the market.

Dust the cobwebs from your Mind

Be aware of the voices in your head. Listen out for your own negative self-talk, which I call your 'Inner Critic'. Negative thoughts and beliefs can be very dangerous for your own personal growth and tend to keep you trapped in your comfort zone.

• Challenge your negative thoughts and beliefs. Are they really true, if so what
evidence is there? Are you just giving yourself a hard time? I guarantee that you are your harshest critic.
• Make a commitment to start listening out for the gentle little voice inside
that I call your 'Inner Guide'. Your 'Inner Guide' has total belief in you and once you start actively and regularly listening, your life will change dramatically.
• Ask yourself what positive message do I need to hearing throughout my day to
help me to move my life forwards e.g. ‘I can do it’ or ‘I am good enough’ –
make this your daily mantra!
• Spend just five minutes a day tuning into your Inner Guide and listen to what
he/she has to say.

Create your Vision

In order to achieve the things you want in life, whether that's to lose weight, change job, meet someone special or take up a new hobby, you need to set specific and measurable goals. Good goals keep us moving forwards, they keep us motivated, and ultimately achieving our goals makes us happy! What is your vision for the year ahead?

• Decide on three areas of your life where improvement is most needed. This
might be finances, relationship and career.
• Set yourself one goal within each area. This might be to… ‘Save £2000 by the
end of the year’ ‘Inject passion back into my relationship’ and ‘To find a job
that I adore’
• Ensure you write these goals down and put them somewhere you can see
them every day.
• Take just five action steps every week to move you towards each of your
goals!

Filter the people in your Life

Are there people in your life who consistently drain your energy? I call them ‘Energy Vampires’. These are the people that are always in some kind of crisis or another and love to bombard you with their problems. Life can be hard enough without dragging someone else’s baggage around too.

• Make a list of those individuals in your life who sap your energy. Don’t feel guilty about this, just do it.
• Make a list of those individuals who lift your spirits when you’re in their company.
• Ensure you spend as much time as you can with those of a sunnier disposition and see what effect it has on your own wellbeing and general happiness – it’s quite amazing!
• Most importantly, avoid all negative conversations - they just drag you down!

Fine-tune your routine

We all lead hectic lives; we seem to cram more and more in everyday. Just stop for a second and think about your daily schedule. What’s working for you and what’s not? How can you alter your daily routine to allow a bit of ‘me time’ in?

• Early morning is the best time for both body and spirit as you are rested, fresh, solitude and the world around you is at its calmest. Set your alarm half an hour earlier, and use this time to maybe meditate, do some gentle exercise, or to simply sit and have your morning cup of tea in the beauty of your own garden. You'll be amazed at what a difference it makes to your day!
• Ensure you have at least two early nights each week. Fill your sleep tank and feel the positive effects it has on your energy levels.
• Have one night a week where you don’t cook, get a take-out or just pull something out of the freezer that you can pop in the oven.
• Delegate. Hire a cleaner or gardener to take the pressure of yourself.

Re-launch your Career

Most of my work as a life coach is around helping people find a more fulfilling career that meets their individual passions and values. We spend most of our week working; it’s imperative that we enjoy our job. We are all here to do work we love and add value in some way. Are you fulfilling your potential?

• Do a mind dump of all your likes and dislikes, your passions and values, talents and abilities and then take an objective look at your current job – how many of the boxes does it actually tick?
• If you’re looking for a career change, start listing all your ideas on a blank piece of paper, both pie-in-the-sky and all the logical options. Get others to help you to do this. Then, start researching each idea in turn. Looking at training, funding and your experience. Most importantly, make contact with people who are already in that line of work and pick their brains. How did they do it, have they got any contact for you and so on.
• If you’re generally happy, but would like to make a few small tweaks, take some time to list five things that would make your working week more enjoyable, from working from home once a week, to just getting out of the office at lunchtime. Most importantly, take action!