Be Your Own Life Coach

Try these simple tips from life coaches to get your priorities in order.

By Kate Hanley

"Before setting new goals, let go of past experiences you might be hanging on to," Tracy Toon Spencer says. List your successes on one piece of paper and your failures on another. Burn the paper with your missteps and find a meaningful way to celebrate your successes.

See Where You Are Now.

Make a list of all the main areas of your life—such as job, romance, friendships, family, diet, and self-care—and rate each area on a scale of 1 to 10. "The objective is to see how all of life is feeding you," Darshana Weil explains. By cultivating an awareness of where you're feeling fulfilled and where you're lacking, you'll see your path more clearly.

Create a Compelling Vision.

Instead of looking at what you want to fix in your life ("Get new job") or what's missing ("Find boyfriend"), write in a journal or tell a friend about a peak experience—a time when you felt most alive and fulfilled. As you're reliving it, notice how you are feeling emotionally. Where do you feel it in your body? Choose a word that represents those emotions and a yoga pose that re-creates the sensations you felt. Write your word and pose name on sticky notes and put them everywhere—the bathroom mirror, front door, refrigerator, and computer screen—and commit to practicing the yoga pose every day. "By reminding yourself of your own vibrant energy, you'll be able to manifest changes that honor who you are at your core," Julie Schwartz says.