7 Ways to Turn Possibilities Into Opportunities (And Stop Procrastinating!)

“Opportunity is missed by most people because it’s dressed in overalls and looks like hard work.” – Thomas A. Edison

Imagine you see a posting for your dream job — everything from the description to the location and salary match what you envisioned for yourself and your life. Your heart beats rapidly, your stomach pulsates with butterflies and you can barely contain your excitement.

You pitch yourself, thinking maybe you’re dreaming. But, to your delight, you feel pain and realize you’re not!

You can hardly wait to begin your application before reality sets in:

“I’m not qualified for this job, they’ll never choose me.”

“I don’t have X, Y, or Z experience.” 

“I’m not located within X area, they’ll probably want local applicants.”

Before you know it, you’ve already convinced yourself you’re not going to be selected, so you don’t even bother applying. Instead, you continue to aimlessly scroll through job postings.

For many of us, this is EXACTLY how we approach our lives, and our dreams. At first, we’re excited and ready — but then, we talk ourselves down. We don’t even give ourselves the chance to see if those possibilities can be turned into opportunities. And because we don’t try, we are never chosen.

We’re all born as powerful, limitless and purpose-filled beings. But, as we get older our human conditioning distorts this truth. 

The potential for greatness lies within each of us, but we don’t all unlock it. Many of us see the world as full of possibilities — but not for us. We grow to believe only the “lucky” or “chosen” ones get to live their dreams. Fortunately, this is a myth.

As Thomas Edison so eloquently stated, “opportunity is missed by most people because it’s dressed in overalls and looks like hard work.”

Yes, the world IS full of possibilities, and at any given time we can turn our possibilities into opportunities if we’re willing to put in the time, energy and effort it will take to bring them into fruition — and take a chance!

Are you ready to take a chance on yourself? If you are, here are 7 ways you can turn the possibilities in your life into opportunities: 

1.) Write Down Your Dreams

Right now, I want you to imagine the last happy daydream you had. What were you thinking about? Who were you with? What were you doing? Why did it make you happy?

Write down your answers.

Once you finish doing that, think about your biggest dreams. Why do they matter to you? What would it feel like to live them?

Again, write down your answers — regardless of how impossible or out of reach those dreams may seem.

2.) Choose One Dream to Focus On

Review your answers from above. What dream stands out to you the most? What do you want above all else?

Whatever your answer is, that’s the dream you need to focus on.

It’s important to note — this selection process doesn’t mean you’re eliminating your other dreams, it simply means you’re choosing a starting point.

One of the biggest mistakes a lot of us make when we try to go after our dreams is we don’t focus. Instead, we try to do everything at once and end up overwhelmed, burnt out and miserable.

But, mastery takes time. It’s not an overnight process. And by focusing on one thing at a time, you’ll give yourself the time and grace to master it. And sometimes you’ll fall, sometimes you’ll fly — but you’ll continue to learn and improve as you go, and eventually, that dream of yours will manifest.

3.) Set 3 Realistic Goals That Align With Your Dream

“If a man thinks he can’t or thinks he can’t, he’s usually right.” – Confucius

Now that you’ve narrowed down which dream of yours you’re going to focus on, it’s time to start setting goals!

To begin, set 3 realistic goals you believe you can achieve.

In my experience, this is what’s worked best for me:

• Set one small daily goal — something you can do every day to get closer to reaching your dreams. For example, reading a chapter every day with subject matter relevant to you and your dream.
• Set one realistic weekly goal — something you can commit to doing once a week, ideally at the same time and on the same day. Your weekly goal can vary, or it can be the same week after week. For me, one of my weekly goals is to write 2 blog posts.
• Set one monthly goal — this goal should be more challenging to achieve than your daily or weekly goals, but still realistic. The idea here is that you spend the month building up to achieve the results of your monthly goal. So for example, perhaps there’s an online class you want to take about how to build a business, and you take the class module by module over the course of the month. After 30 days, you finish the class equipt with newfound knowledge about how to build a business.

Goal setting is important — it’s the process that allows you to move from concept to action to manifested reality. Treat your dream the same way you’d treat your body if you were new to working out — start slow, and build your endurance little by little. Over time, the culmination of your efforts will pay off beyond your wildest dreams.

Until then, don’t be afraid to put in the work and make mistakes. Look at this opportunity as a period of growth.

4.) Stop Overthinking, Start Doing

One of the biggest blessings and biggest curses about being human is our ability to think.

Many times, our thoughts lead to brilliant ideas, solutions, and manifestations. Other times, our thoughts paralyze us from taking action because we become so engrossed in the “what ifs” and worst case scenarios, we stop ourselves from taking the first step toward achievement.

Rather than getting lost in the world of thought (remember, we already covered the whole daydreaming thing in step #1), take action.

The first step is always difficult because it’s scary and full of personal risks, but without taking that first step you’ll never get to where you want to be.

Know that you absolutely will make mistakes, but without those mistakes, you wouldn’t be able to learn what not to do, and what you can do better. Remember, a failure is only a failure if you don’t learn from it.

5.) Work For Short, Uninterrupted Intervals

Rather than trying to buckle down (unless that’s your preference) and achieve everything in one sitting, instead work for short, uninterrupted intervals.

According to science, the secret sauce of productivity is to work in 30 to 60-minute intervals, and then take a break. Studies show this structure leads to increased productivity and awareness.

If you work for 30 minutes, take a 7 to 10-minute break. If you work for 60 minutes take a 15 to 20-minute break. Make sure you step away from your computer or project and take a walk, have a snack, meditate or do something else that has nothing to do with what you’re working on.

Use the stopwatch on your phone to time yourself when you begin each focused increment. This will create urgency and keep you hyper-aware of the ticking time.

Above all remember, this moment right NOW matters. This is the only real moment you have. So use it wisely.

6.) Assess Your Progress

At the end of each day, week and month set aside some time to review your progress to date. What did you do well? Where did you fall short (and why)? What do you need to improve on?

Use these questions as a guiding force to keep yourself accountable and on track. And be honest with yourself when you answer these questions because they’ll help you identify what you need to change to achieve your dreams.

7.) Believe in Yourself (And Give Yourself Credit!)

If you want to manifest your dreams, you have to believe in yourself and your ability to do the things you want to do.

If you don’t believe you’re capable or deserving of your dream, it will always be out of reach. Whenever you’re feeling uncertain, I want you to recite and ritualize these words:

“I am powerful beyond belief. I am worthy. I am deserving. And I am capable of achieving whatever I want to achieve.”

When you feel good, and you believe in yourself (regardless of what anyone else says or thinks about you), you will be an unstoppable force.

Also, remember to give yourself credit often for what you have achieved — even if it seems small or insignificant. Every action you take and each goal you complete is a BIG deal so celebrate your achievements!

A possibility is only a wish until you start to take action — and then it becomes an opportunity. Will your world be full of possibilities or opportunities? The choice is yours…

Xx,

Antasha

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About Antasha Durbin: Antasha is a spiritual writer, life-long student of the universe, and psychic tarot card reader. Her website, cajspirituality.com, is dedicated to casualizing the spiritual experience and making it attainable for anyone, anywhere, anytime. Follow her for free, easy-to-digest and highly actionable advice on spirituality, mindfulness and empowered living.