” The wisdom is in the pause” Alice Walker
I would like to take this time to wish all of you a Happy New Year. I know we all begin the New Year with lofty goals, New Years resolutions, and plan to change our habits. Many of us, however, never make it past the first couple of weeks with these dreams of change. Why does this happen? I believe it is for a few reasons, one being that before we can move forward we need to look back at 2016 and see where we are coming from. We need to take the time to pause, reflect and listen before we can truly begin the New Year in 2017. No worries that 2017 has already begun. We have time to still do this. Take this time to go through these steps.
- Looking Back before we move forward:
Have you taken the time to look back on 2016 or are you rushing forward into 2017? Have you harvested the wisdom from the past year before you step into 2017 fully? Did you have any successes in 2016? Have you experienced any surprises or failures? Take a moment to pause and reflect where you have been. Give your self the gift of reflecting on your achievements and accomplishments. Celebrate your successes, learn from your failures or shortcomings, and reap the benefits of wisdom from all. Reflect on all you have done and become and feel grateful for the past year. Release the disappointments and celebrate you and all you have become. Slow down, create space for yourself, and give yourself this time for self-love. Make the choice to breathe and take the time to look back before you move forward. Make the choice to reflect for more than a few moments.
Close your eyes put your hand on your heart, and go back over the months till you come to January 2016. What did you hope to accomplish in 2016? What were your dreams than? Did you accomplish any or all? Reflect on each month as if you are viewing a movie screen showing your life through each of the 12 months of they past year. You will be surprised as to what you remember (or forgot) and all of the beautiful moments you had, the scary times that may have showed up, the way you dealt with disappointments, endings, letting go. Breathe and watch the screen. Where have you been and where are you now?
- Release, Reframe, learn
Take the time to finish these sentence completions:
I should have…….
I could have………
Why didn’t I………
Now go to that place of compassion and self-love. Are these true? What is the loving truth?
The truth is………
I forgive myself for…….
In 2017 I want to ………
What is it you want to leave behind in 2016? Let it go now………..
- Now…with intention:
Choose how you want to begin the New Year. Think about what matters most to you – at work, at home, relationships, and your personal well being. Who is the person you want to bring forward into 2017? Rather than asking what do you want TO DO – Ask How do I WANT TO BE? Often times we get so caught up in the doing we forget who we really want to BE and how we truly want to show up in the world. What words come to mind? Do you want to be radiant, joyful, vibrant, creative, clear, open, and/or authentic? How do you want to feel? Consider what you want to be, feel, and experience next year. Once you make this clarity of choice you will be able to support yourself more to achieve that and be it. Set your intentions on how you want to FEEL. This way your choices next year will align with this. You can always do a check in. Does this choice harmonize with the way I want to feel or be? This is a choice. This is a practice. Trust your inner wisdom to know what is right for you at any given time. Hang your particular words up or put them near your computer so you can always see them and remind yourself what your intentions are and how you want to feel and be.
- Now…Vision
Begin to vision and illuminate what you want to bring forward. Take your time, there is no rush. You can write in your journal a story of how you see the year turning out or you can do a vision board, which is a pictorial representation of your vision. Gather a bunch of magazines and without censoring your self cut out any sayings or pictures that appeal to you. Once you have enough, edit, and lay them out on an oak tag. It is amazing what you subconscious will take you what you truly want. Hang your vision board up where you can see it every day; however, this is only for you no-one else so put it in a place just for you to see. Once you do your vision board think about the action steps needed to make some of these visions a reality. Baby steps, Kaisen steps, 30 day challenges are all techniques to help you integrate the changes or try to accomplish some of these visions into reality. When an athlete wants to jump the high bar she sees it happening as if it is real and than practices and trains till it is a reality.
Take the time the celebrate all you have done and become. Pause, reflect, and listen… I wish many blessings to you and your family and my wish and prayer for you is:
May 2017 be filled with good health
May 2017 continue to show you what is most important in your life
May 2017 be filled with love, joy, well-being, savoring, gratitude, and happiness
May 2017 unfold as you want to BE in the world bringing your light to others
I am always here for you as a life coach and cheerleader if you ever need to clarify what your full potential looks like and how to take the kaizen steps necessary to achieve your dreams and desires. I am sending you many blessings for the New Year 2017.