Ways my life has changed in the past 12 months

On 1 May 2009, I moved out of the apartment I’d lived in for 2 years, moved to a new part of Boston I’d never lived in, let alone visited, and started making some serious changes in my life.

Twelve months later and I’m homeless. I’m unemployed. And I don’t know where I’ll be a week from today.

How did I get here?

I took control of my life.

For a while, I was going through a rough patch. Boston was becoming boring and I was desperate to get out. To get away. I knew I needed to make some changes to make life interesting again. Here are some of the things I did:

1. Changed my living situation. I moved from a neighborhood that I knew well where lots of my friends lived, to an area I’d hardly explored, in an apartment with relative strangers.
2. Decided it was okay to be alone. If I didn’t have plans for Friday night, I didn’t care.
3. Allowed for more randomness in my life. Whether it was a last-minute trip to New York City or chatting up a stranger on the subway.
4. Took initiative. It took me a while to figure out what I wanted to do with my life, but once I knew what I wanted, I did as much as possible to make it happen. And on my own timeline, too.
5. Changed my habits. I started running regularly (how surprisingly relaxing!) and eating healthier.

What kinds of things do you do to make sure you reach your big goals?