How to set goals for the life you want

20 August 2018
By Fashion Quarterly

Emily Gallagher Conscious Boss

Do you want to feel happy, energised and confident enough to start kicking your goals?


Life Coach Emily Gallagher, founder of Conscious Boss, sure knows a thing or two about setting big goals and smashing them. The 31-year-old Kiwi studied life coaching in 2015, trained with iconic leaders in this space including Tony Robbins and Gabrielle Bernstein and is now travelling the world sharing her skills and passions with business leaders, wellness entrepreneurs and others looking to “reconnect to the flame inside”.

One of the key things about working with a life coach is learning how to harness your best self in order to achieve your goals and be successful. So getting inspired by people who have done just that should be right up there on your to-do list. Read on to discover Emily’s first steps to living fully and creating more of what YOU want out of life, then settle in and watch some inspiring talks from thought-leaders who have motivated Emily in her own journey.

Identify the domino.

Find the areas of your life that will make the biggest impact on your overall happiness should you seek to create change. For me right now it’s health; the healthier I am, the more energy I have, the more confidence it builds, and the more I can create. Identify a main area for you and create a plan for how to enhance it, including your support networks and how to remain accountable. Remember, expecting every area of your life to undergo monumental shifts all at once could be setting yourself up for downfall. So think like Oprah: “You can have everything, just not all at once.”

Come from love.

You’re with yourself always, so start by knowing that you are enough, right now as you are. This isn’t something that’s ever finished, but know it’s always perfect. Ask yourself why you really want the things you want, see what comes to the surface and practice leaning into it daily. You can’t guilt and shame your way into change, so come at it from love, acceptance and presence. The results that come from that place are the only results you want.

Shake up your environment.

This is ultimately going to shift everything in your life. If you are surrounded by people whose way of being, lifestyle and goals do not align with your own then your expectations on yourself will decrease. On the flipside, the more healthy, happy, and all-round epic the people you spend time with are, the more of those qualities you’ll take on yourself. It has been proven that your relationships have more of an impact on your health than your genetics – yes really! – so don’t take this lightly. Shake up your social setting and surround yourself with people living the life you want for yourself.

Take action.

This part is pretty crucial but is often a step I see being skipped! Identify some core people to support you, make a plan about what you want to create, then get going with it. In my mind, imperfect action is always better than perfect ideas. Get some skin in the game then pivot and shift as needed along the journey.


WATCH: Inspiring talks to get you motivated.

Brené Brown on Ted.com: ‘The Power of Vulnerability’

Rich Roll on YouTube: ‘The Only Motivation You Will Ever Need – David Goggins is the World’s Toughest Human’

Tom Bilyeu on YouTube: ‘The Keys to a Good Life | Ryan Holiday on Impact Theory’


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