What Do You Want?!

For me, there are two fundamental elements to a fresh start: work you have to do within yourself and improving everything that surrounds you.

Do you know what you want? No, but seriously, do you? My acting teacher taught me many things, but there's one that applies beyond acting: WANT is everything. Do you know how acting performances look without the want? Flat. And as long as we don't know what we want to achieve, change, improve, we will stay exactly where we are, just kind of gliding through life with no meaning attached.

You need to know what you want so that we can get to the next step. I know what I want. I'm not bragging or anything, I swear. I have goals, big ones and small ones. And I always write them down. Why? Because I love the feeling of achieving what I once only dreamed of and then getting back to one of my lists of goals. I always look at it for a moment, smile, and then check the box. What was once just a dream is now a reality.

When the Covid-19 pandemic first started, I got an idea. I wanted to write, produce, direct and star in my debut short film. That want kept me going, kept me motivated and inspired throughout the madness going on in the world at that point. Did it end up being just an idea? One of those: 'it would be nice, but it's not going to happen' situations? No, it did not. That's where we get to step 2.

Dreams

Many people, including myself at some point, think about sitting in a comfy chair and dreaming life away. But dreams don't allow you to sit in a chair. I know what you're thinking here, "Chill, Marcel. Am I supposed to read this while running?" What I mean is, real dreams won't let you only think of them. They will make you do something in order to achieve them.

And that brings us to the next question: What do you do when you know what your dream is? You make a goal out of it.

Planning is crucial here. I love planning. I'm a bit of a best-of-both-worlds kind of person. I love living in the moment and dealing only with the things relevant to now (not always successfully, though) but I also love planning things, setting myself long-term goals. The idea to make my debut short film could just as easily have stayed a dream, right? But because I thoroughly planned everything, I managed to get to the next step of the process. I wrote everything I needed down as simply as possible, like a to-do list:

Of course, there were countless other lists and notes specific to each part of the process. For instance, casting-wise, I had to find actors, send over sides, organize meetings, etc. But the checklist above formed the framework that allowed me to elaborate on each individual step.

The next step of the process was implementation. Once you write everything down, the hard work begins. Realization is essentially taking action. And for every operation, motivation is required.

The term motivation is originated from the Latin word movere, meaning to move. What drives me as a person are little successes along the way. If I don't do anything (ie. move forward), there is no motivation, and therefore no realization.

Do you know how I managed to make an award-winning short film? By believing in myself. I know it sounds so cliché, but that extra spark will bring your goals closer. Do you know that every one of us thinks around 72,000 thoughts every single day? Do you think it will make a difference if you believe in yourself instead of using your precious thoughts on self-sabotage? I think so. Scientists long time ago proved that our thoughts affect our lives. So these are not some motivational speaker/guru fun facts, but reality.

Planning is doing something in the present moment for the future.

Let's get to part two - Improving your life from the outside in

Clothes. That's right, clothes. I know it doesn't hit as deep as the previous section but let me elaborate. What we decide to wear everyday affects our mood. You feel different when you're dressed up or in your sweatpants. But apart from buying yet another pair of shoes or a cute shirt, how can we improve our wardrobe to make it more exciting and inspiring?

Find your style, clothes, and outfits that you feel comfortable wearing. A wardrobe that expresses who you are or who you aspire to become. My style is a bit of everything, which makes sense cause I would also describe myself as a little bit of everything. What helps me is organizing my clothes by color. It's satisfying for the eye and your inner peace. I always have two clothes racks in my room that I use for the clothes I wear most often. They help me put all the outfits together and see how the garments/colors go collectively in the daylight. When you're in a morning rush, and you can't find your favorite shirt, it's usually because your wardrobe is a bit all over the place.

Lists keep things tidy.

I shamelessly admit I have my messy moments. The truth is, we've all been a mess at least once in our lives. We all go through messier and tidier phases.

I often say to myself: I'm a mess. It doesn't always mean that I actually am one, but there's just something oddly satisfying about it. It adds that extra sprinkle of drama to our lives. When I get back from a grocery store, and the only thing I forget to buy is the one thing I went out for in the first place, instead of saying: I forgot to buy salt, I say, "I'm such a mess." It's just so dramatic. Once again, I could've easily avoided forgetting something essential by writing it down. And so, lists really make our lives simpler.

It doesn't necessarily have to be a list or a checklist. It could be a note or an idea that you got in the middle of getting a haircut. I always think it's better to write it down than to ignore it. Yes, you might never need that information, but it doesn't take much to write it down. And hey, maybe a simple note will end up changing your life!

What inspires me helps me keep my life organized.

One of the best tricks for improving my life has been vision boards. It is always something different for everyone. What inspires me personally is watching people who represent what I aspire to achieve in my life. Therefore, you can find vintage magazine covers of my four favorite actors on my wall. I look at them and remind myself of who I want to become and what I want to achieve. Whenever I feel down, Meryl Streep looks at me from that Rolling Stone cover, and I can feel her saying, "Don't you dare giving up."

Going into the new season feels like an excellent opportunity for a fresh start. I hope some of my ideas will inspire you to make new habits and improve your lifestyle. But don't feel like Spring is the only time in the year to improve yourself and optimize your life. You can do that any day, any time. Yes, there is something about Spring that makes you want to blossom like a flower, but you can also shine like a snowflake in December or glow in the heat of August. The seasons inevitably change, but you and I can only change if we want to.

Thank you so much for reading!

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