“And now let us welcome the new year, full of things that never were.” (Rainer Maria Rilke)
“The first step toward getting somewhere is to decide you’re not going to stay where you are.” (JP Morgan)
2018 beckons—-are you ready?
I love the feeling of possibility with the start of the new year. It’s an opportunity to let go of the previous year. Living in the past can keep you stuck. Letting go of what was can free you. A new year (and, frankly, every single day of every year) is a great time to make a fresh start. Rather than feeling regretful and disappointed, it’s so much better to appreciate the here and now and, yes, decide to do things a little better in the coming months.
I look forward each year to cracking open a new notebook and all of those blank pages just waiting to be filled with my list of what to do more of, less of, or eliminate altogether. Always the optimist, I try to think big.
Making plans–business, professional, financial and health-related–can be a good thing. In a perfect world, making resolutions or at least a list of things you want to accomplish, can be an important support system or daily stopping point from which you give yourself the space to identify your highest priorities. I find that even if I don’t accomplish everything I put in writing at the beginning of the year, referring to the list daily provides accountability as the year ensues, and forces me to stop for a few minutes to see if I’m on track and/or figure out what needs to be changed, tweaked or crossed off as completed. Making daily entries about progress made keeps me honest about how I’m spending or frittering away my time.
But the darker side of making a list of resolutions is that I get overzealous and the list ends up being too long and unrealistic. And, I keep adding to it. And within a few weeks, I feel overwhelmed or disappointed that I haven’t made any or not enough progress.
For 2018, I’m going to try something a little different. Think minimalist and uncluttered. Instead of the usual list, I’m working on a theme for the year. I’ve decided to focus on ONE BIG THING for 2018. I have a few contenders so far and I’m taking the next few days to select my top pick.
In selecting my ONE BIG THING, I’ve asked myself just one question: What is the one thing I want to do this year that will be truly life-changing?
Once I make my choice, I then will create a one-page action plan to help me tackle my ONE BIG THING. It will focus on the person I need to be in order to achieve or live my ONE BIG THING. I will post it where I can see it daily. I’ll create a one-word mantra to keep me focused on it every single day. To support my progress, I will ask myself at the end of each day whether I did my best to support myself in living or honoring my ONE BIG THING.
I can’t wait to get started.
THIS WEEK’S CALL TO ACTION:
If you like this idea, try it for yourself. Think BOLDLY. Grant yourself permission to be, do or have the ONE BIG THING that beckons you. Find a quiet space and listen for it. It’s there waiting. And, if you really, really aren’t sure what you want, let your ONE BIG THING for 2018 be that you allow yourself to start listening–that alone is a major shift in perspective in this noisy, busy, overstuffed world we live in.
I wish you a happy, healthy, prosperous and life-changing 2018. Life is short; dream big. Want more for yourself. Take right action. And be kind to everyone.
“We must be willing to get rid of the life we’ve planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us. The old skin has to be shed before the new one can come. (Joseph Campbell)
