4 main things to understand to make a change in your life

Adam L
May 7
3 min read

Updated: May 8

🧭 4 Foundational Shifts That Will Change Your Life

If you’re feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or like you’re not living up to your potential, you’re not alone — and you’re not broken. But real change doesn’t come from trying harder. It comes from shifting the way you structure your life, your environment, your thinking, and your self-talk.

Here are 4 powerful principles that, when practiced consistently, will create lasting change.

1. Create a Schedule and Routine

Let’s face it: motivation is unreliable. Some days it shows up, most days it doesn’t. But routine? That’s what actually moves the needle. Routine creates freedom, and by understanding what you need to do, you can easily make space for what you want to do.

✅ Why it matters: A structured schedule reduces decision fatigue and builds momentum. When your day has a rhythm, you free up mental energy for things that really matter — like growth, creativity, or connection.

🔁 Try this: Start small. Create a simple morning or evening routine. Even 15–30 minutes of intentional structure can create big ripple effects.

2. Design an Environment That Doesn’t Rely on Willpower

You don’t have a discipline problem. You have an environment problem.

Willpower is finite. The more you need it, the faster it runs out. Instead of constantly resisting temptations, remove them. Build a space where the right choice is the easy one.

🧹 Simplify your space:

Want to eat healthier? Don’t keep junk food in the house.
Want to focus? Put your phone in another room while working.
Want to work out? Lay out your clothes the night before.

🧠 Pro tip: Make your environment do the heavy lifting so your mind doesn’t have to.

3. Understand Your Triggers and Stimulants

If you don’t know what’s driving your habits, you’ll keep repeating them on autopilot.

We all have triggers, both positive and negative. Understanding what these are will help make making decisions and taking action easier. Something as simple as seeing a post on Instagram can both motivate you to go to the gym or not. We also absorb more than we realize from the people and content we engage with. By knowing what these are we can recognise that we have been triggered which then gives us more power to either avoid the negative feeling associated with it or embrace the positive feeling it gives.

👀 Pay attention to:

When you decide not to do something
When you put something off
What makes you feel motivated

📝 Try this: Keep a “trigger journal” for a few days. Note what’s happening right before you feel distracted, anxious, or tempted to fall back into old patterns.

Awareness is the first step toward power.

4. Speak Positively to Yourself

The most influential thing in your life would be the words you hear. And you are the first person to hear the words you speak. Now we know this isn't the first time you have heard of this and when you tried it, it felt to weird to continue. When you understand that it feels weird because your body and mind is so not use to hearing something positive about yourself, it doesn't know how to react. Making a change is about getting out of your comfort zone. This is one of them.

💬 Shift your language:

Instead of “I’m terrible at this,” try “I’m still learning.”
Instead of “I always fail,” try “I haven’t found what works yet.”

🌱 Practice: Start each day with one simple affirmation. Something like, “II am going to have a good day.” Say this 5x while looking at yourself in the mirror. Watch and listen to yourself saying this and I promise it will be both uncomfortable and enlightening.

🚀 Final Thoughts

Life doesn’t change in a single leap. It changes in small shifts — practiced daily, with intention.

Set up a routine that works for you.
Make your environment support your goals.
Understand what throws you off track.
And speak to yourself with the kindness and belief you’d offer a friend.

Start with one. Build from there.

Your life doesn’t need a total overhaul — it just needs a direction.