I’m starting a new blog series for Mondays that should provide us all a little motivation as we head back into the week.  As an introduction, I believe life is all about design, and I’m not talking about just interior design.  Living By Design is about identifying what you want and DESIGNING a plan to accomplish it, whether it be fitness, health, sales, business, your home, your family, faith or fun. If it influences your life, you have power to design it.

I’m not presuming I know it all, but I’ve walked some interesting paths (most, but not all, of them by choice).  I’ll share my own stories through this series and hope to bring some encouragement to whomever comes across my ramblings. I welcome your comments and am looking forward to the journey.  So let’s kick this off, shall we?!

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I would like to open the series noting that Living By Design is to create a life that means something to you.  At some point in our lives, most of us get caught up in worrying what other people think of us. Maybe it’s our parents or friends or our co-workers…or that hottie at the gym. Admit it, we have all done or said something – or dressed a certain way – motivated by what even a stranger would think of us.

But what it really comes down to is creating a life that feels good to YOU. You may not end up with the life you have envisioned, but eventually, you have to learn to trust yourself and listen to what feels right. Yes, listen to that feeling…your instincts are usually right on point, but sometimes they don’t line up with our preconceived notion of what we’re supposed to be doing so we ignore them. But when you let go of what you belive your life should LOOK like and dig into what really MEANS SOMETHING to you, you will probably end up with a life that is more amazing than you originally imagined! (As a disclaimer, if what feels good to you is hurting other people, please re-examine your motives or inspiration and potentially seek professional help…that isn’t a healthy feeling.)

This is not unlike designing a home for one of our clients: the space has to FEEL good to come home to, and not just LOOK good as they enter the room. Who wants to come home after a long day and lie down to rest their weary body on a couch that looks really really pretty but is as hard as a rock?

Learning to live for yourself and not living for the validation of others is a huge step towards a fulfilling life. It’s not always easy. I still struggle with validation in certain areas of my life, but I have definitely made huge strides in other areas. So as we wrap up this first Motivational Monday, pay attention to what you do this week that feels good rather than what you do that you think just looks good. I’m gonna!