Your Brightest Life, Here, Now
By Mindy McHorse

Mindy Tyson McHorse here, with my final issue of The Writer’s Life this week.

Defining your goals is a lot like good copywriting. You’ve got to dig for specifics and tap your core emotions.

We’ve spent the week doing that, from visualizing what you want (via a Wikipedia page) to asking yourself what you can’t have, to acknowledging it’ll take some guts on your part.

For example, let’s say your dream is to have oceanfront property in the Hamptons. Most people you know think you either have to be a celebrity or that you need to come from “old money” to afford that kind of lifestyle.

You, on the other hand, know it’s possible, so you visualize your biography talking about the family celebrations you host out of your home in Montauk.

You know that getting to that house in Montauk will take several years of building your writing career. You know you’ll have to go for big goals and stay focused along the way. But you also know you can do it.

Here’s a little gem I got from Joshua Boswell at the last Web Copywriting Intensive: “It’s okay if your wants and needs change.”

Because that’s a common fear, isn’t it? That you’ll pick the wrong goals and move in the wrong direction. But you can’t let that hold you back. After all, you don’t know what will happen tomorrow or next year. Yes, you can plan it out — and you should. But at least if you know what you want right now, you can start making progress today.

If what you want changes a little, you’ll already have the forward momentum you need to get it.

Consider this quote from Peter Drucker:

“The best way to predict the future is to create it.”

Go for your deepest passions and follow your heart — but know that you still need to use your head. I’m a big believer in the power of positive thought, but I also know I need to keep working hard while thinking positively — I can’t just mediate on my yoga mat and expect good things to happen.

It’s about balance. Your head and heart need to forge a lifetime partnership if you’re ever going to pull off your goals. It’s worth the effort to merge them, though. After all, it’s your destiny on the line.

So put yourself out there and forge ahead — but still listen to the advice of others. You define what your brightest life will look like, but others can help illuminate it. Your instincts are the key to your success, but other people’s success can be your guide.

Before he died, Michael Landon stated simply, “Whatever you want to do, do it now. There are only so many tomorrows.”

If you’re waiting to take a chance on yourself, stop waiting and choose today to act. Either share your vision with others in the comments below or make the decision to put yourself out there and plow ahead.

Once you reach out, wonderful things will start to happen. It will become more real to you. Others will step in to help you. But it all starts with knowing what you really, truly want.