Happy New Year to you all!
I hope you had a lovely festive season and are looking forward to whatever this year will bring.
We are now into the middle of January and another new year is well and truly here. How do you face each new year as the clock ticks past midnight? Do you face the start of the year with dread or boredom or do you face it with excitement?
I see each new year as a beginning, an adventure that lies ahead of me, filled with possibility.
Every January, I think with excitement of all that I may achieve in the coming year. There are goals I want to reach, things I want to learn, places I want to travel to. I want to feel inspired, because a new year is a new beginning that promises so much. I don’t set resolutions any more, as I feel they are often no more than empty promises that I make, because it is the done thing. Instead I think of a word that describes how I want to feel for the coming twelve months.
This year I chose two words – Nurture and Abundance. I intend to nurture myself in everything that I do, the food I eat, the people I see and the things that I bring into my life. I also intend to bring more abundance into my life through my health, family, work and the people that I serve.
What about you? Have you made a resolution or do you also choose a word that describes how you want your year to be? Do you feel inspired or do you feel this year will bring much of the same to you? If you don’t feel excited, what can you change about your current circumstances?
Our thoughts and mindset determine so much what we will achieve in life. We can all have goals and work toward them if we start to think of the possibilities, not of the obstacles that lie ahead. Often just taking the first step is all that is needed. Is there something that you have always wanted to do but for various reasons, haven’t been able to do it? Have you ever wanted to learn the piano, start dancing, join a band, write a book – the possibilities are endless. What really inspires you? Perhaps it’s starting meditation or yoga, spending more time in nature, getting rid of the junk in your diet. What is holding you back?
A big excuse is “time” or if you look more deeply, it is “fear.” We are all busy people in a very busy world but if we really want to make a difference in our lives, we can learn to prioritise and make time! I decided many years ago that I would do a daily meditation. I would set the alarm 5-10 minutes earlier and meditate before I started my day. I gradually increased this and now spend 20 to 30 minutes every morning doing my meditation at the start of the day. If I am in a real hurry I will do just 10 minutes, but it has become such an integral part of my morning that it feels as if something is missing if I don’t do it. It helps me to focus and start the day in a calm and serene state. I also gain inspiration and ideas when my mind is quiet.
Fear is something that often holds us back and stops us from following through on our passion and inspiration. We fear that we are not good enough, it will never work, no one will want to read this or see this, we will look silly, what will people say, who am I to write this book or paint this picture or start this business. But as Marianne Williamson so eloquently says, “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be……………Your playing small does not serve the world.”
I feel fear many times in my business and in my life. Every time I want to do something new, start a new course, write a blog, raise my prices, put myself out there in public or on social media, do something that I haven’t done before, I feel a tinge of fear. However if I let this stop me, I would never achieve anything in my life. Like you, I have dreams and I am determined to achieve them. Sure, some things won’t work out and I will have to back track or start again, but if I never put one step outside or typed one word, or tried one thing new, I would never discover what is possible. The only way to progress and grow is to face your challenges, no matter how scary they may be.
So what’s one new thing that you want to achieve this year? What inspires you? What’s something that you have always wanted to do but have been too scared to try or have considered it not important enough? We only have one life so how can you make yours more meaningful? Write it down and commit to doing it. Take the first step and the second and third and you will be surprised at how much easier it becomes. Start today! Bring some awe and magic back into your life. Then sit back and see how you feel. Inspired? Excited? I certainly hope so!
With love,
Judy xx
Ps. Let me know what inspires you in the comments below. What will you do that’s different this year?
References: Marianne Williamson “A Return to Love”. Images “Pixabay.com”
Disclaimer: Please note that all information in this article is the opinion of the author and obtained through her research and knowledge and the above references. It is not meant to replace medical advice and a medical opinion should always be obtained for any health condition.