5 Keys to Transforming the Way You Live and Work  

Before the clock strikes midnight on December 31, women worldwide commit to New Year’s resolutions. They join the local gym in hopes of really losing the weight (and never finding it again) this year. They connect with a financial advisor to determine their best methods to save the most money and finally get out of that financial rut they’ve been stuck in for years. They may even attempt to let go of that dead-end relationship that they’ve held on to for the past six years…only to reconnect with him by Valentine’s Day.

By February, New Year’s resolutions often become a distant memory, never to be found again until December 31 of this year. Thus, the vicious cycle continues–until one decides to get off the merry-go-round of resolutions and accept total transformation.

And while many women feel transformed after a day at the spa, wearing a new dress or getting a new luxury vehicle, true transformation starts in the mind.

Here are five keys to transform the way you think:

Assess your Circle. Birds of the same feather truly do flock together. If you’re the smartest, most positive person in your circle of professional or personal friends, it’s time to find a new circle. If you’re at the top, but the other people in your circle can’t see the light of day most times, there is no way they can wholeheartedly celebrate your success and push you to go higher. They’d just be happy to get to the place you are in right now.
Bottom Line: You can’t grow until you connect with others who are already in the position of where you’re trying to go.

Speak What you Seek. Words are powerful—more powerful than most people know. If you constantly say, “I never have enough. I’m always struggling. I can never seem to get ahead,” you’ll never have enough; you will always see every situation as a struggle, and you won’t feel like you’re getting ahead in anything. Your life will go in the direction in which your words guide it.
Bottom Line: Write out positive affirmations on note cards and place them in your bathroom or on the dash of your car. The more you see them, the more you will say them. The more you say them, the more you will see your life transform and go into the direction in which you speak. 

Read at Least One Motivational Book per Month. Positive, motivational books are available in your local library, if you’re not sure where to start and you don’t want to buy one yet. You can even search Amazon for free motivational eBooks.  Start somewhere.
Bottom Line: If you feed your mind junk, that’s what will come out of your mouth. 

Try Something New at Least Once a Week. It could be a new restaurant, a new coffee shop or even something as drastic as a new hairstyle. You’ll be surprised how enriching your life will become once you open yourself up to new horizons.
Bottom Line: When you break out of the norm and explore other options, you open up your mind to new opportunities, new places and new heights. 

Dress up More Often. For most women, a new dress or suit makes them feel like a professional superwoman in stilettos. When you dress in a classy, chic, professional yet spunky way, it not only boosts your inner confidence, but also the confidence that others around you have in your abilities.
Bottom Line: Even when you don’t feel like it, push yourself to put on your favorite dress, that new three-piece suit and your best pair of heels—and walk like a boss!

There are so many resolutions you can make for the New Year—and some you may actually keep. But transformation—true transformation— is not instant, it’s long-term. It’s not something you’ll drop after a week or a month; instead, it becomes a lifestyle, and who you are. It also becomes a key component of your brand, your why, and your drive.

While transformation is, and will always be continuous, it all starts and ends in your head. Until you change your mind, nothing around you (or in you) will change.