How I crafted my life into a masterpiece

Standing in front of the mirror, I felt disappointed in myself. I zeroed in on my midsection, pulling at the fat I’d accumulated around my stomach. I was disgusted. Within the last few months throughout lockdown, I’d gained at least 10kgs. How did I let this get so out of control?

Well, to be fair and to, perhaps, justify my decline, I’d lost my job during COVID, which had hit me hard. Living off government support was pretty rough; however, it was hardly an excuse for the lack of exercise and the Netflix/junk food binges. The reason for that was sheer gluttony.

On top of that, my partner had also cut me loose. His reasoning based on a quote he’d seen on Facebook, which went something like this: “lockdown can only go 4 ways. You’ll come out a monk, a hunk, a chunk or a drunk”. He then preceded to tell me that I had emerged as a combination of the latter two - a chunk and a drunk. Sadface.

Feeling rejected, I took myself out for a healthy breakfast at a hippy vegan cafe I'd always wanted to try. It was bustling, but I managed to score the last available table. I was practicing 'self-care', a concept I'd just learned from a podcast hosted by Kendra Allen AKA 'your break-up bestie’. Apparently doing activities to improve my physical and mental health was key to getting through my break-up.

As I sat there contemplating my life, a clean-cut, elderly gentleman in a royal blue suit walked in. He looked a tad out of place compared to the standard vegan customer. He scanned the overcrowded cafe for a moment, until his eyes settled on me - a single woman, taking up a 6-seater booth in the corner. Please don't come over here. I begged. Ugh, nope, he's coming.

The man approached my booth, with seemingly impeccable posture. "Morning young lady, do you mind if I take this seat?" he asked. "I'm on a tight time budget this morning so need to be thrifty with my minutes".

"Yeah, sure, why not" I replied, mostly unable to disguise my irritation.

He studied the menu intently, until the waitress eagerly approached him. "I know you!" she said, "Aren't you umm..." she closed her eyes for a moment, tapping her pen on her notepad, clearly trying to put his face to a name "Brian Tracy?" she asked.

"Why yes I am" he replied with a big smile.

"Wow, no way! What are you doing in Australia? I love your book 'Eat that frog'" she told him excitedly.

"Why thank-you, young lady. It’s not often I get recognized in public. You must be a real go getter" he assumed.

"Well, I would say more of a self-help junkie. Applying the principles is a different story" she laughed. "Now, what can I get you?".

After taking his non-standard, extremely specific order, she asked him to autograph the bottom of the page and left with a spring in her step.

Now I was curious.

"So, Mr. Brian Tracy, you're some kind of self-help guru?" I asked.

"So, now that you know I'm a big shot, you want to engage in a conversation with me?" he smiled cheekily.

"Umm, yes sir" I laughed.

He then spent the next 10 minutes giving me a quick run-down on his work. He'd obviously forgiven me for how discourteous I'd been. I did a quick google search on him while he was in the bathroom. He was clearly more than just a writer. With a net worth of around $16 million, he seemed like a god in the personal development world. He was the president of 3 multi-million-dollar companies, happily married with 4 kids and spoke 4 languages. I was very impressed.

When he returned, I'm sure he could sense my initial standoffishness had now been replaced by respectful admiration. I did not want to let this rare opportunity pass me by.

"What life advice would you give an average Joe like me?" I asked hopefully.

"He checked his watch. "I do need to get going; however, lucky for you, my advice can be boiled down to two simple steps". He said, opening his laptop bag and handing me a book. "Get yourself a fresh notepad and pen and follow my advice in this book".

As he got up to leave, he turned and looked at me intently. "And keep in mind that it’s not only the words that you write that create magic - it’s the physical process of writing them down on paper". He explained.

"I'll take old-fashioned, hand-written notes only" I promised.

I watched in awe as Mr. Tracy left. I felt wonderstruck. I then averted my gaze to the cover of the thick red book he'd handed to me. "Brian Tracy: Goals! how to get everything you want - Faster than you ever thought possible".

I felt like the universe had just provided me with the answer to all my problems. I left the café, book clutched tightly to my chest and headed to 'Officeworks'.

"Can I help you with something?" an elderly sales assistant asked as I wandered the aisles.

"Just looking for a classic notebook for journaling" I replied.

"No worries. Did you want something low cost or were you after more of the luxury style notepads?"

I paused for a second. "Actually, I am chasing more of a quality brand". I stated boldly, remembering my self-care practice. Nothing but the best for a queen. I affirmed to myself.

She guided me to the luxury section. "So, these are your classic Moleskines. Their covers are more durable than most so shouldn't damage as easily". I checked the price. $24.95. My ingrained frugality radar was going off in my head; however, I bit the bullet and purchased the classic version, in black.

For the remainder of the day, I worked through Brian Tracy's book. To start with, I had to determine exactly what it was that I wanted as if I was designing my dream home on paper. He specified that goals should be written in the present tense, as if you'd already achieved them.

In my new notepad, I wrote down every single little thing that I wanted in my life. The list was MASSIVE. I then culled it down to my four main priorities.

My end refined goals were:

Goal 1.

• I weigh 15kg less and have muscle definition - within 8 months.

Goal 2.

• I have purchased my own home for $500,000 - within 4 years.

Goal 3.

• I run a meal prep business, working from home, earning at least $80,000 per year - within 5 years.

Goal 4.

• I am in a loving and supportive relationship with my ideal man - within 2 years.

The next step was to work out how I was going to get there. Brian had said to list all the obstacles as well as the knowledge, information, skills and people required to turn your goals into a reality.

The funny thing was that I already knew how to achieve my goals. I had already done all the research possible over the years. I knew how to lose weight, how much of a deposit I needed to buy a home, which dating apps to use and what I needed to do to start my business. My problem was always my inability to take action. Just like the girl in the vegan cafe had said, applying the principles was a different story.

In Brian's book, he talked about 'Occam’s Razor', a problem-solving principle, which essentially theorized that you should implement the simplest, most direct solution, requiring the least number of steps.

So, I wrote down exactly what I needed to do for each goal, based on what I had already learned.

My final, simplified solutions were:

Goal 1.

• Eat in a calorie deficit for 8 months and follow Mike Matthews Thinner, Leaner, Stronger weightlifting program.

Goal 2.

• Find a job, paying $60,000 per year.

• Keep my expenses at less than $2,500 per month ($30,000 per year).

Goal 3.

• Experiment with different recipes and settle on my top 10.

• Follow my already created business plan.

Goal 4.

• Set up accounts with dating websites 'Bumble', 'Tinder' and 'Hinge'.

• Date like crazy.

I then expanded on these solutions and wrote down every single little thing I would have to do to complete my goals and added these into my calendar.

The next day I got up at early, coffee in hand and turned on the morning show. A piece popped up about a woman who had just started a high protein, calorie-controlled meal prep business for fitness competitors. She explained how she'd started the business and how fulfilling it was to have such a flexible job working from home. That's strange timing. I thought. I visited her website and ended up ordering a weeks’ worth of meals within my daily calorie budget of 1,550.

The rest of the week felt like something out of a movie. It seemed like everywhere I turned, there was a solution to one of my problems. I opened the mail and found a flyer from my local gym. They were offering a month’s free membership if you joined by the end of the week, with no upfront costs. So, I called up and joined.

I also found a job in my local newspaper that was the perfect fit for me. 'Vegains' - a meal prep business was seeking an on-site manager. The pay rate - $60,000 per year. I was astonished. Was my reticular activating system only just noticing all these things now? Or was the universe actually listening to my requests and providing me with the solutions I needed? It seemed like everything that I wrote down in my little black book was being realized in reality.

Standing in front of the mirror 8 months later, I could barely recognize myself. I lifted my top to reveal my flat, defined stomach. I was not only managing Vegains, but I was also experimenting with different recipes, learning how to write nutritional labels and getting to know the ins and outs of how the business worked. Weeknights and weekends were spent dating. I still hadn't met my soulmate, but it seemed that the more confident I grew with my life, the higher the quality of men I could attract. My savings plan was also on track. I only needed another $25,000 to reach my goal of a $53,000 home deposit.

Then the most extraordinary event took place. That same day, it was as if the universe wanted me to know just how much it could do for me. I was scanning Instagram when an oddly specific competition called 'The little black book challenge' popped up. Contestants were required to write a story about someone who came into $20,000 unexpectedly and the story needed to include a small black notebook. The prize for first place was $20,000 US, which, when converted to AUD, just so happened to be around $25,000. It was as if the competition was created just for me.

Of course, I entered and won. Wow.

Today, exactly one year after writing down my original goals, my life is a freakin masterpiece. A work of art designed by yours truly.

Wearing a pink, checkered apron, I arrange 14 apricot coconut protein balls into a small biodegradable container. My personal crown-shaped logo is printed on the top right with my business name 'QueenEats' written underneath. Gazing at me in awe, my partner wraps his arms around me and kisses my neck. "You are so sexy" he says. "How did I get so lucky?".

"It wasn't luck darling" I reply smugly. "Just the power of putting pen to paper".