Must Read: Wake Up! Career Advice to Get on With Your Life

The world is full of dreamers. Those who are content with blissfully imagining what their life
could be like, the things they could do, the people they could meet and the places they could go.The problem is that they don’t actually end up doing anything about it. They miss their wake up calls by hitting the snooze button on their lives.They are usually the ones who end up living beneath their privileges, feeling lost, frustrated and unfulfilled.
Imagining or dreaming is not wrong. As a matter of fact it can be a powerful step to creating the life you want.The problem begins when dreaming is all that you do. Just dreaming can easily turn into procrastination and procrastination causes pain. It is self-defeating and can be self-destructive if you are not careful.
The habit of procrastination has baffled researchers, psychologists and science for some time. When someone knows how lethal smoking is to their health, why do they procrastinate quitting? Some believe that it has to do with fear of failure or even success, negative self-talk and beliefs, distractions, a true desire to change, lack of motivation or just being overwhelmed with the whole situation. One thing is for sure; there is no quick fix or easy way to overcome procrastination but there are steps you can take that will help you wake up and get moving in the right direction for your career, education and life.
1. Be honest with yourself:
Find a place where you can be by yourself without any distractions and where you won’t be interrupted. Take this time to make a list of the things that you are putting off and procrastinating about. This isn’t about making excuses. Be upfront and honest about the things you are dragging your feet on. Things, that if you changed, could actually move your life in a forward direction. Your list might include homework, studying, finishing school, smoking, drinking, doing drugs, over-eating, finding a job, getting rid of toxic friendships or figuring out what you’re doing after high school, college or university. Once you have your list, choose which self-defeating habits you want to change, create a plan to make it happen and then get moving.
2. Brainstorm ideas for your possibilities
Consider what you want to accomplish with your life. Forget about what others say is “realistic”. What’s real for them may have no meaning for you. Imagine (yes, it’s okay to do this) what you would do if you absolutely could not fail. Create lists to answer the following questions, “What do I want to do?”, “Where do I want to go?”, “What do I want to have?” and “Who do I want to be?”
Let your mind fly a little – no restraints.
3. Get off your couch:
There has never been a time when more possibilities and opportunities have been available for you to achieve your dreams and goals than right now. For some of you, that might be the problem. You feel like you are drowning in the limitless options and you become paralyzed because you don’t know which ones to choose. News flash…most of your career and education choices will not be fatal. So pick one or two and investigate them. See where your action leads you. Weigh the options and choose the one that is best for you at this time. Plan what you need to do to make it happen. You will be amazed at the places you go and the things you’ll do just by taking one step at a time. If you are still having trouble getting off the couch – at least make your time productive and read a good book like “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho. It’s a great read about personal discovery, creating opportunities and living the possibilities.
4. Wake up, now!!
Now that you’ve got lists of your possibilities, go and DO SOMETHING about the ideas that have most meaning to you at this point in your life. Robert Louis Stevenson, (in case you missed it in English class, he was a famous author) said, “You cannot run away from a weakness. You must sometimes fight it out or perish; and if that be so, why not now, and where you stand?” What a cool question. Why don’t you wake up and make the changes toward the life you want, now? Ask yourself, “What would a life I don’t want look like?” (You might find that picture the easiest to imagine because you are living it right now.) “What will happen with my life if I don’t make changes now?” “What pain will I cause myself if I don’t do something now?” “What opportunities could I miss?”
Whatever direction you are going to take, stop hitting the “snooze button” in your life. Stop ignoring your wake up calls and go live a life you’ll love!