Have you ever wondered how to transform your life? Can you imagine what it would feel like to wake up each morning to a fulfilled life, one full of passion and purpose?

I used to imagine what it would be like to break free from the local trailer park. I dreamed of not worrying about how I would eat or wondering when my lights or phone would be shut off. When I was lonely, I imagined having someone to share my life with who accepted me. More than anything though, I wanted to live a life that mattered.

The Breakthrough Mindsets

Even as a kid, I always knew that I wanted more from my life. The problem was that I didn’t know what I was after, much less how to get there. Moreover, I wrestled with identifying what made me unique and what I could do that no one else could. After three decades of trying numerous things that never worked, I was left feeling frustrated and skeptical.

Then, one day, I learned a divine truth that changed my entire perspective: we develop and shape our purpose over time.

This realization shifted everything. It took a huge amount of pressure off my chest and helped me stay present. Staying present helped me see myself more clearly, which allowed me to actually change. This led me to three key paradigms that you will need to accept before you learn how to transform your life.

#1 – Your True Calling is Transformation

External goals are great, but in the end life is about growth.  Become who you are meant to be, and the rest of will begin to come into place.

I was so preoccupied with changing my income and my status, but those were mostly symptoms of the real problem. What I needed most was to change. I was entitled, angry and defensive when it came to criticism. Those things were holding me back, keeping me from acknowledging that I was my own worst enemy. Once I accepted this, my life began to take off.

#2 – Breakthrough is About Changing How You Think

Transformation has to happen in your thoughts before it can happen anywhere else.  Every action begins as an idea, and currently you are having 50,000-70,000 every day. If you can change the nature of your thoughts, you can change your behavior. So, what does it take to transform your thoughts?

For starters, we need to question our questions. Many of us spend far more time asking “why” questions than “how” questions. “Why” questions usually focus more on problems than solutions and are primarily complaints. They begin with phrases like “Why can’t I____?”, and “Why can’t they____?” In contrast, “how” questions lead us toward actions and choices. They focus on finding solutions, believing that they are possible.

Changing how we think also takes accepting that there is no magic pill. As much as we would to arrive overnight, personal growth takes continual effort. You have to choose to change every day until you die. It’s challenging, but the alternative is to stay stuck. This is the easy way, and most people choose it. I did for a while, but ultimately I couldn’t anymore, and if you’re reading this right now I doubt you can either.

#3 – Self Awareness is Crucial

Ironically, I became much more self aware when I stopped obsessively trying to answer every question about where I was going and what I was meant to do. Those questions are part of how to transform your life, but it’s possible to become so fixated on them that you become perpetually frustrated when you don’t have all the answers. When you’re frustrated, you usually don’t think as clearly. It’s crucial to begin with the end in mind, but sometimes we don’t have the ending one-hundred percent defined for a reason. It may be more important for you to release an insecurity or kick an addiction than know what you’ll be up to in a few decades.

Your blind spots will defeat you long before any external force or circumstance. If you don’t learn where you’re weak and accept responsibility for the ways you’re sabotaging yourself, then you won’t ever truly advance. It may hurt to admit where you’re struggling, but it’s a lot worse to be self-deceived.

How to Transform Your Life

The good news is that no matter where you are, there are always next steps. In fact, how to transform your life can always be boiled down to the same 3 Steps:

1. Deciding on a Breakthrough at ALL COSTS
2. Choosing Better Principles to Live By
3. Practice the Fundamentals Every Day

Step 1 – Decide that You Need a Breakthrough NO MATTER WHAT

The key here is not only realizing you need to make a change, but being determined to do whatever it takes. Compromise can be important, but there comes a time when you can’t afford to bargain with yourself. Resolve to change and do not stray from this course. Breakthrough in life is NOT for a select few only. It’s for anyone who is genuinely searching and willing to put in the time and effort to achieve it.

Step 2 – Choose Better Principles

I challenge you to look at any person you admire for their leadership or success and consider their life choices. If you do, you’ll find that they live their lives by a committed set of principles.

Imagine your life is a train. How’s your train going to get from A to B? It needs tracks, and these tracks are like principles. One of the reasons a principle-based life is so productive and fulfilling is because when you live by principles, the decisions you need to make on a day-to-day basis are already clearly defined for you. For example, I know adultery kills a marriage, so I protect myself by not putting myself in situations where temptations tend to lurk. My corresponding principle is, “A marriage that’s protected blossoms.” If I want to have a great marriage, then all my actions need to be aligned with that principle.

Step 3 – Take Care of the Fundamentals

Principles put into action are called ”Fundamentals”. Fundamentals are simple actions that are repeatedly taken to produce your desired results. You can have guiding principles, but never using them will keep you stuck. Worse, if you consistently say you believe something and don’t act on it, you’re training yourself to be dishonest and inconsistent, and it would be better having never made the claim in the first place. In other words, you must follow through to transform your life.

Your Next Steps Are Critical

Over the past 20 years, I’ve learned what it truly takes to transform your life. These lessons took me from homelessness to owning and operating several multi-million dollar businesses. Thankfully, you don’t need to spend 20 years to learn what I did. Change begins when you accept the Breakthrough Mindsets and resolve to follow the 3 Steps to Life Mastery.

Next you’ll need to break down the principles and fundamentals necessary to succeed in each major area of life. I cover these individual areas in my post The 8 Pillars of Life and share how you can start getting quick wins today.

Finally, I’d recommend checking out our free resources for more information on how to transform your life. You’ll get free tips on a regular basis to keep you motivated and moving forward in your hero’s journey, and you’ll get updates and deals on our products and events that will help you accelerate forward towards a meaningful life.