This image was used in Royal Crown Diamond Frances Fuller’s weekly newsletter to illustrate two sides of the same coin:Is your life filled with stress? If so, consider if this statement is true. Are you working hard for something you don’t care about? If so, you know that isn’t healthy. You feel it every day when you dread getting out of bed. When you hate Monday, you’re not doing something you’re passionate about.

How can you turn this around? Evaluate what you want most in life. Is what you’re doing going to get you there? I served in the United States Air Force for 28 years. I didn’t always like it, but it was going to get me to where I wanted to be — able to retire at a relatively young age and not having to work for someone else unless I really wanted to do so.

I achieved what I wanted. I retired at 47 years of age. I haven’t worked for anyone else since then. I am active, busy, and happy. My husband and I travel when we want to. We still don’t have enough time.

If what you’re doing now is not going to get you to where you want to be, take a few moments — maybe even a few weeks if you haven’t given this much serious thought before and focus on what you want most for your life. Look at some general areas. Start with these seven areas:

Legacy: Opportunities to effectively share your life’s work, both in dollars and in substance.

Spiritual growth: increasing in knowledge and understanding of god’s word, life-long journey that occurs through reading and apply god’s word to your life.

Autonomy: freedom from external control or influence; independent choices, self-governing.

Liberty: immunity from debt, IRS independence, freedom of choice; to think or feel or do just as I please; personal freedom from servitude or confinement or oppression.

Helping others: world goodness, contributing, makes a difference in society, give utopia on earth to others

Recognition for creative expression: recognized or acknowledged for achievements, honoring, remembered, cherished, endowed with greatness

True health: energy for living, fit and healthy, sound mind, interactions with others, relationships, relaxation, strong immune system, healthy lifestyle

They’re all important and good, but if you pick the two most important to you, the others will follow. What two are MOST important to you? Please leave a comment telling me which two are most important for you right now.

Once you’ve picked them, how are you going to bring them to fruition in your life? Use only positive statements to define what would happen in your life to make them a reality for you. Write this down and read it aloud to yourself each morning when you wake up and each evening before you go to bed. Start the day with this positive affirmation of what you want from your life. Go to bed each night with that positive affirmation and vision on your mind.

You can achieve your dreams. Start by focusing on what they are. Make them big. Bigger than you think possible, but make them YOUR dreams. What could you be passionate about?