Many of us can agree that this year has been hard. So hard that we are questioning what the next step is. We are wondering how we can turn our life around. Regardless of what has happened in your life, we all get to a point where we want more from life. We want to do or achieve more. This year might have put more pressure on you because you realize that there are no guarantees in life.

You could have lost your job. You might have had to add another job to your already hectic schedule or it could be you lost someone. And that made you wonder if you if there’s more to life. There’s nothing wrong with ambition. This is what many people get wrong. As long as you check it. That’s important. Your ambition mustn’t be so dangerous that you’re willing to hurt the next person. I suppose this why many of us don’t go after what we want because we see it as deadly. Dangerous, even.

This isn’t true. We are weeks away from the end of the year. And they might be things you’re terrified to do because you believe it will change you. One thing starting a business has shown is me is that success and money can’t change a person. All it does it bring who you are into focus. You can’t hide who you really are once you become successful. That’s why successful people come in all shapes. So, ambition and money aren’t bad as long as you understand why you want to be successful. Here’s another thing you need to know: if you want to be successful for validation, then you are in for a rude awakening.

No one has the power to make you feel good about yourself unless you give it to them, but by doing that you will always want validation. You will always want acceptance. And when you don’t get, it will feel as you are worthless. You will feel as if you are sinking in a sea of inescapable pain. That’s why you need a clear why for what you are doing. 

If you are still with me, here are a few ways you can change your life around.

Start a side-hustle

Baby steps, remember. As a kid I was wearing a float and my older brother threw me into the pool. Yes, he took the whole throwing someone into the deep-end literal. But many of us do. This should have encouraged me to swim, but it didn’t. We all are different. 

Some people do well with pressure. Others don’t. You can’t apply one theory or tactic to everyone. That’s crazy. Therefore, meditation doesn’t work for everyone and I get you might be used to hearing that. Do meditation. Do this. But life doesn’t work that way. If you want to turn your life around, start a side-hustle. Generate a bit of money to start your business or whatever you want to do.

This is one of the best ways to turn your life around. Why? Because you are starting from scratch. You are learning new skills. You are building on the skills you already have. You are working with what you have. And they are a lot of side-hustles you can do from home. So, don’t worry, I have got you covered. 

Also Related: Quick Side-Hustle Ideas To Start At Home

Start a business

If you are looking for something more exciting, than starting a business is a step into the right direction. Starting a business can turn your life around in 12 months. They are a lot of reasons it can turn your life around. But to be a successful entrepreneur, you need to develop skills. When I first started my business, I never knew how my life would change. I had to learn about designing graphics. I had to learn about WordPress and how to work on my site.

I learned a bit of marketing and the thing with starting a business is you never stop learning. Side-hustles take only a fraction of your life, but a business is like having a baby. It needs you to monitor, take care of, and worked on it constantly. They are a lot of businesses you can start. You could start a clothing business. Maybe you want to start a grooming business. Or it could be you want to do a start-up. They are hundreds of business models out there. But they all start with the knowledge of wanting to solve a problem. 

Figure out what problem you want to solve and work from that. This is one of the best ways to turn your life around in 12 months because it will give you insight to what bad habits you need to kick to the curb. 

Also Related: Is Entrepreneurship Right For You?

Start a blog and monetize

Yes, blogging still works in 2020, and yes, you can make money from it. Maybe, you want to start a blog and I recommend you think about starting one. It is still one of the easiest ways to turn your life around. The reasons can vary, but like starting a business, you’ll wear many hats.

That’s the thing about blogging. Even if you pay for someone to do things, you still have to learn how to hire talent. The first thing I learned in starting my blog was hiring talent isn’t easy. Often, you will lose money so I had to learn in order for me to understand who to hire. It was challenging, but also exciting. Starting a blog is only one part of the puzzle. The next part is monetizing it. Don’t wait years to monetize your blog. One thing that turned my life around was when I made my first couple of hundreds of dollars from my blog.

I had earned money from my blog. It shaped the way I saw everything. I realized I could do so much more. That’s one thing that’ll change your life around with blogging. It changes your mindset. You get into it not knowing if you’ll make a difference or change your life then it happens. You have a light moment and that’s so powerful.

They are many ways you can make money from blogging. But it starts with growing an email list, then you can monetize your blog. You can sell a product or service. You could also offer coaching services, sell a course or a membership. The sky is literally the limit for blogging. This one of the easiest ways you can change your life around. 

Also Related: How to start a blog 

Start to a podcast

Not everyone enjoys writing. So, if you are one of those people, then this too can turn your life around in 12 months. Podcasts have become increasingly popular in recent years, and they are like blogging. In that you talk about stuff that interests you and on a weekly basis you post your podcast episode on your website/blog.

If you feel more comfortable talking, than you can start a podcast. It is like blogging in another way, the barrier of entry is as low. It won’t take you a while to figure it out. You might spend more money depending on your budget. Some newbie podcasters start one without the equipment. Just a phone and a cheap microphone.

They are ways around it. But starting a podcast isn’t as difficult as you might think it is. It is all about dedication. But if you stick with it, a podcast will turn your life around in 12 months. Especially if you do it the right way. Yes, there’s the right and wrong way for starting a podcast.

Some people hurry the process and miss out of the experience. The experience of starting anything new will turn your life around. Keep moving forward in order for you to turn your life around. Remember, baby steps are important so don’t rush the process. Another thing to take into consideration is to not take too long. Procrastination Analysis is one thing many of us struggle with. Don’t be one of those people who achieve nothing because they spend too much time analyzing.

 Also Related: How to Start a Podcast

Start a YouTube channel

This another way you can turn your life around in 12 months. But is harder to do than podcasting and blogging. It costs nothing though, which is the significant thing about starting a YouTube channel. In the beginning, as you grow, you will need to buy professional equipment. Still, you need to vamp up your skills. One thing you need to learn is editing videos. Which might take more time depending on how quick of a learner you are.

The funny or interesting thing with this list is that one will come before the other. Let’s say you start a YouTube channel; you might need to add a blog or a podcast. If you start a blog, then you will need to start a YouTube channel. You will need to do this if you want to grow faster. Why? Because those who use different mediums grow faster than those who don’t. Unless you started your business years ago before it became saturated.

Now, it’s saturated and to stand out you need different mediums. That’s the frustrating thing, but it will make it easier on you. YouTube is a search engine. Over two billion logged-in users. Imagine that. There’s 15% of traffic comes from the US. YouTube is the second preferred platform for watching video on screens for 18-34-year-olds. There’s a lot you can achieve with YouTube. Every year hundreds of people become famous from starting a YouTube channel. 

Their lives have changed. Yours will turn around. They are a lot of niches you can choose from. A niche is a specialized topic, i.e. husky grooming is a sub-niche and dog grooming is the niche.

Also Related: How to Start a YouTube Channel: 10 Brilliant tips

Write a book

This is one of my favorite ways to turn your life around. Why? Because it has the lowest bar of entry and you learn a lot about yourself. I get it you might think you aren’t a writer. You can hire ghostwriters to write your story. Everyone should write a book. Because you can change your life around in so many ways. You can shift your perspective. 

The first time I wrote my story was in 2017 and it changed my life. I learned that what I thought I wanted; I didn’t. I also understood myself better. I knew that the only way to go forward was to be honest with myself. I stopped caring what people thought of me. The next year I started my business. But it started with writing one chapter at a time. The book was slightly over 20,000 words.

I didn’t have a lot of support. I didn’t see myself as a great non-fiction writer. Yeah, there’s a big difference in the way the words form. Fiction writers write with poetic justice. Words spin cobwebs and flow with such ease that it brings characters to light. With non-fiction writers, you become the character. Write with less poetic justice and more with a cautiousness in your words. Allow your personality to shine through every word you use. Different. You can still write both, but fiction writing has always been where I excelled. Though writing my first self-help book turned my life around. And I know it will do the same for you to.

You don’t even need to write a self-help book. There are hundreds of genres you can work on. But writing will turn your life around.

Create a course

 The one thing that has turned many people’s life around has been creating a course. You can create a course from your blog articles, podcast episodes, or YouTube videos. You can create a course on any topic and it will sell as long as you understand what your customer wants and what they don’t want. 

Let’s say you have written hundreds of dog grooming articles and even wrote a book. You could create a course on how to take care of your Siberian Husky, but you need to break it down. Maybe your audience is more interested in how to groom Siberian puppies. Find out what your audience wants and give it to them. It’s important that you do that because only then can you grow and turn your life around.

Creating a course can be tricky at first, but with time it gets easier. The noble thing is, you can always sell it. Make it once and sell it many times. That is one of the best things about creating a course. Gurus call this passive income. Every course creator will tell you that courses turned their lives around. 

Create a membership/coaching

Another way to turn your life around in 12 months or less is by creating a membership or coaching business. What is outstanding about this is all you might need is a landing page to collect email addresses? A landing page is one page that requires a recent visitor to do one thing. For example, pay for a product or subscribe to a newsletter.

On your landing page you will offer a free premium product such as a checklist or an eBook. Once people subscribe, send them emails every month teaching them a new skill. You can then later talk to them about your membership site or coaching business. Your coaching or membership site can be about anything. It can be just articles, books, audio or video. You don’t need to include everything. What you do need to is focus on helping your clients. You can coach them on their ADHD or lack of focus, etc. In the beginning, solve one problem so it isn’t too difficult for you. The significant thing about this is that you can add to any of the other business models above. Starting a business is more general and the others are specialized business models. 

Whatever you choose, these can change your life around for the better.

What is your main takeaway from this and how will turn your life around. Please comment below.

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                                                             Vanessa