In a world where people want-want-want and need-need-need, it’s nice to take a moment to reflect on the things that you may not want or need. This will be different for everyone, but I think there’s a reason it’s so much easier to figure out what we don’t want. I think this natural tendency can be a great tool for discovering if the path each of us are on is the right one for us. This exercise is especially useful for eliminating a lot of the noise and messages that society pushes on us on a daily basis.

Make a list of everything you don’t want or need in your life. This could be material possessions, emotions, behaviors, and even people. Here’s mine.

1. I don’t want to be in debt anymore.
2. I don’t want to work a rat race job.
3. I don’t need all of the clothes I have.
4. I don’t want to live off food stamps anymore.
5. I don’t need to surround myself with people who negatively impact my life.
6. I don’t want to become a sheep.
7. I don’t want to be dependent on anyone else.
8. I don’t need to do things just because someone else told me to.
9. I don’t want to be rooted to just one place because of financial problems.
10. I don’t want to be unhappy.

Once you have your list,decide what it would take to accomplish your don’t-wants-don’t-needs. Come up with at least one actionable goal and focus on achieving it. For example, item 3 on my list is that I don’t need all of my clothes. An actionable goal for me is to sort through them and donate whatever I don’t want anymore. It’s easy and attainable. With more long term items, start with your one actionable goal and continue to build off of that. If you like the visual, cross off each goal you achieve. This can be really motivating!

Remember, this isn’t going to be a list of things you can knock out in one day. It’s going to take time, but if you focus and follow through with your action steps, I know you can accomplish your greatest goals. Get started right now!

What are some of your don’t-want-don’t-needs? What steps are you going to take to accomplish them?