It’s that time of year again. The holiday transition period where the celebrations of Christmas are over and the New Year and all the promise it holds, is looming closer. These are the days where we have a chance to relax after the hype and busyness of Christmas and take stock of the year that has been. It is also the time of year where we often start making grand plans for the year ahead.
New Years resolutions seem to be loathed or loved. Loathed because in years past they have been made on a whim or have fallen over within a few weeks, or loved because they hold within them feelings of promise and new beginnings.
I always find the New Year refreshing and exciting. I love the concept of new beginnings and new adventures. The idea that I can take my ideas and bring them into reality. Of course I can do this at any time during the year but for some reason the ideas flow with great intensity around the new year. Maybe it’s because I always have holiday time between Christmas and New Year. There is quiet time to think, contemplate and manifest. I energetically create the space for renewal.
With any resolution there are pivotal questions, the most influential being why? Why do you want this new years resolution? What will it bring to your life? How will it make you feel? How would this new feeling benefit you?
A resolution made purely on the basis that you want something you do not have, is destined for collapse. Your resolution may be to loose weight, to be more organised, spend more time with your kids, try a new hobby or take Salsa dancing classes. Whatever it is, it is likely the reason you want it is because it is going to make you feel better on some level. It will fill a place within you that you sense lack, displacement or that feels unfulfilled.
A new way of being requires a new way of thinking.
Let’s say your New Years resolution is to be 10kg lighter? Now project your thoughts ahead to imagine that you are already 10kg lighter. How does the ‘new you’ look? How does this 10kg lighter version of yourself act? What do they eat? How much do they exercise? What new organisational plans were put in place to achieve this new goal weight? Was exercise time scheduled? What dietary changes were made? How did the new version of ‘you’ think? Where did you focus your thoughts?
We effectively achieve our goals by focusing our thoughts in the direction that we want to go. Not by focusing on what we do not want. We attract into our life that which we are thinking and also feeling. Begin by resolving to shift your thoughts and see this as your primary focus rather than the outcome of the goal.
Start with changing the way you perceive the situation. Focus on the feeling your new resolution will bring to your life each moment. Begin to recognise these feelings as you go through your day. We do not make significant changes overnight. We did not arrive at where we are today in an instant. We took life step by step. This is also how we will shift.
Each night before you go to sleep, take a few moments to recount the proactive steps you took toward your goal. Acknowledge that you did the best you could throughout the day. Look at what was effective and commit to yourself that you will stay on this path again when you awake for the new day. Don’t commit to being perfect. Commit to keep on stepping forward.
Every action and every intention takes you one step closer toward a habit. Once a new way of thinking and being becomes habitual, you will start to see incremental changes. Put realistic time frames on your goals. If your plan is to melt away 10kg in weight, be realistic. Give yourself adequate time to achieve your goal. Don’t weigh yourself every day. Instead, weigh up your thought processes and your actions toward your goal.
Now open up to the infinite possibilities that come to you as result of this new mindset.