I found that clients who began treatment by forming a clear picture of their goals were much more likely to make healthy lifestyle change and become healthier.
Create a Vision
The First Step of your Healing Journey
The first step on your healing journey is to imagine your ideal lifestyle. You might ask yourself what sort of life you want to lead, what your day will look like, who you will surround yourself with. You will want to clarify what your routine will be, what your home will look like. The more detailed, vivid, and clear the picture you create, the better.
This is not the law of attraction or anything like that. It’s simply a way of motivating yourself and formulating a plan of action. There are a few different ways you can create your vision:
Contemplate your goals
The easiest strategy is to simply think about what you would like to change and achieve. However this method is not enough for most people and I found that it rarely works.
Record your dreams
If you are a talkative person consider making an audio recording. All you need to do is open the voice memo app on your phone and record your vision and goals. The advantage of this method is that it’s an excellent way to express your emotions. The emotional nuances in your voice. Play your recordings now and then to remind yourself of what you want to achieve.
Write down your vision
Sitting down with a pen and notebook is the most popular method. Because decluttering is very much a visual activity several of my clients like to draw pictures of how they’d like their homes to look. Others like pasting pictures or magazine cut outs into their notebooks. I always recommend taking a few ‘before photos’ of your home, and once you are done decluttering you can compare them to the ‘after photos’ of your home.
Create a vision board
If you are a visual person or have an artistic side you will enjoy creating a vision board. All you need to do is paste a collection of pictures onto a board and stick it on your fridge. If you prefer to keep your goals private make a digital vision board or create a Pinterest vision board. The great thing about Pinterest is that you can make your board private.
Create a Mind Movie
If you’re comfortable with technology, try making a Mind Movie - a short video that brings your future to life. This is a technique popularized by Dr. Joe Dispenza, who believes that repeatedly watching a vivid, emotionally charged vision of your ideal future can help rewire your brain and prime your body for change.
Start by collecting images, video clips, and uplifting music that reflect the lifestyle you want to create. Then use a simple video editing app (like iMovie or Canva) to put them together in a short 2–3 minute clip. Add affirmations or key phrases like “I wake up feeling rested” or “My body moves with ease.”
Play your Mind Movie daily, ideally in the morning or just before bed, when your subconscious mind is most receptive.
You don’t have to believe every image right away. The point is to feed your nervous system a steady stream of positive, embodied impressions. It’s like mental rehearsal for the life you’re building.
The Desire Map
I've read quite a few books on setting goals, and all of them had something valuable to contribute, but for me the information inside a book needs to touch your heart, otherwise you'll read it, do the exercises for a week or two, and then give up.
One exception is The Desire Map by Danielle LaPorte. For her, it all began one New Year's Eve while sitting by the fire with her husband. They were setting goals for the coming year, but none of them felt right. “And yet something was still missing. It felt full, but empty. Eager but not ... energizing.”
So, she asked her husband, “How do you wanna feel at work?” He answered, “Courageous. Confident. Adventurous.”
At that moment things shifted for them. They started the exercise over, and this time, instead of discussing their external goals, they talked about how they wanted to feel, and what they would do to elicit those feelings.
The process of goal setting became so much more engaging for them. Instead of planning on buying things such as a new computer or a bigger sofa, they decided to do things, like having a dinner party once a month or making their own pasta.
LaPorte's approach to goal-setting and life planning is centered on the idea that all our goals, ambitions, and intentions are ultimately driven by our desire to feel a certain way. She encourages her readers to identify their core desired feelings - how they want to feel in various aspects of their lives (e.g., career, relationships, health). These feelings serve as guideposts for making decisions and setting goals.
Goals with Soul: Rather than setting goals based solely on external achievements, LaPorte advocates for setting "goals with soul"—goals that are aligned with your core desired feelings and bring a deep sense of fulfillment when achieved.
Her book, The Desire Map, involves a series of exercises and reflections to uncover your core desired feelings, clarify your intentions, and create actionable plans that prioritize those feelings.
Living Your Core Desired Feelings: LaPorte emphasizes that the journey is as important as the destination. Living in alignment with your core desired feelings means making choices and taking actions that honor those feelings on a daily basis.
I’m Dr. Rodger Douglas, DMH, a South African-born homeopath now based in Osaka, Japan. With a psychology degree from Nelson Mandela University and a diploma from the Hahnemann College of Heilkunst, I specialize in holistic care for fibromyalgia. I serve clients by phone or video across the US, Canada, the UK, and beyond.