Feel more freedom in 3 steps

Every morning the alarm goes off, the same routine plays out, and then that drive to work. Sometimes life doesn't feel as free as you might want it to, but it can be. In psychology, this is called locus of control, which simply means control over your life. It's not about eliminating various obligations, but about deciding for yourself whether you do something or not.

The difference between feeling free and not feeling free lies in control. If you decide what you do, then you feel freedom. If others decide what you do, then you feel restricted. Here are three small steps to take that control.

1. Set your boundaries
The very first step towards more freedom is the word NO. That may sound contradictory, but the more you say no to someone else, the more you say yes to yourself. You gain more space to do what you want. Saying no starts with that annoying task at work, which you know a colleague is trying to push onto you. Just like all those emails and messages that unfiltered take over your day. Don't let others determine how you organize your day (and thus your life).

2. Make agreements with yourself
A Friday afternoon when no one can schedule a meeting, a cross through the month of August because you're going on a trip with your child, or that two months in Greece that you've dreamed of your whole life. Agreements with yourself actually provide more freedom. It's important that you consider the agreements with yourself just as important as the agreements with others, or perhaps even more important. Do you want to start every day with a walk? Do it. No more than two meetings a day? Go for it. If you have control over what you do, others cannot take control over you.

3. Do it differently
My announcement to leave for two months and perhaps be away more often and longer threw people off. What work are you going to do then? Where are you going to live? And what about your partner? The best tip I can give you is: allow yourself to think differently than others. Don't let yourself be limited by the fact that people around you don't think beyond what is usual. Of course, you have obligations, but instead of always thinking that something can't be done, it's also an option to think about how something can be done. Just because you're quitting a job now to try something completely different doesn't mean you can never go back. Just because you're renting out your house now to be away for a while doesn't mean your house is no longer yours. Think about what you would like and what is needed for that, without your reptilian brain taking over.. And feel free to start small. You certainly don't have to quit your job; an unreachable day per weekend can already give you more freedom. It's all about control.

Source: Psychologie Magazine