How a Personal Manifesto Can Inspire You to Live More Fully
If you are looking to take your life from getting the minimum from yourself to the maximum, creating a personal manifesto can be a great first step to take in the right direction.
What is a Manifesto?
Manifestos have been around for hundreds of years. Merriam-Webster calls them written Statements declaring publicly the intentions and views of its issuing body. They are particularly popular before, during, and after political campaigns and polls. A personal manifesto is essentially the same thing, but also incredibly different. They are a way to keep your priorities in front of you, similar to a traditional manifesto, but they are not always for the public to read and study, though they can be. It encapsulates what you want out of life, and what is important to you, and is meant to be very intimate.
Your own personal project will function as both a personal statement of your values and beliefs, as well as what you feel are your biggest challenges, and where you want to see a change in your life.
Like any important project or journey, it’s important to brainstorm ideas before putting pen to paper. The great thing about a personal manifesto is that it is completely personal, hence the name, and curated to your and your life journey.
Take a moment, or several, and think about your strongest values and principles in life. Those will be the backbone of your manifesto. This language can be strong, but it does not have to be. You will want to use words that will bring you up, and drive you to chase the goal you have in front of you.
Putting it Together
Once you have your subjects you are ready to truly create your masterpiece. Using yourself as the subject of a creative piece may feel a bit odd, or even scary, but the result can be life changing! It is all about taking a deep dive into who you are at your core and then running with it.
Your manifesto may look something like your favorite quotes, authors, childhood sayings, or any words you hold near and dear to your heart. It may have made you the person that you are today. The beauty of a personal manifesto is that you have complete and total free reign for it to be whatever you want it to be. In fact, it can be as short or as long as you would like. Nothing has to be in complete sentences, words can be scattered all about the page, but it can be longer than a page if desired.
Benefits
The biggest benefit I have seen from personal manifestos is the accountability it gives the creator. Typically short enough to read in a quick moment, it can give you the words of wisdom you want to see each day. This way, you don’t have to lug around your old journal to take down your thoughts. Or even your favorite book that you keep for both sentimental reasons and life lessons. You may have a religious book that you take with you, but it would be incredibly hard to read it in its entirety every single day, impossible even. You can continue reading scriptures and books for your entire life. But having a personal manifesto will create a safe space of accountability, peace, and purpose at a moment’s notice.
Anyone can write a manifesto. You do not need a writing degree, nor have a “way with words”. You can be an everyday, average joe, who just wants a little self-support in their life, or just wants to bring challenges they see in the coming year to the forefront of their everyday thinking. Luckily, you also do not have to have a “bad” life, be sad, or feel undervalued to write a manifesto. You may even be the happiest you have ever been in life and feel the need to write one. There are no rules, other than what you feel you need to see every single day.
Conclusion
This post has gone on and on about the beauty within a personal manifesto, but it is true. As you can see, there is no real blueprint for writing a personal manifesto. Ultimately, because of how, well, personal it is. Try it for yourself and see where your favorite quotes, books, songs, people, and more, take you. Create inspiration worth reaching for each and every day.
