Given that New Year’s Day is now behind you, it is my guess that you have already invested time in deciding on your New Year’s resolutions. Or maybe you’ve decided that New Year’s resolutions never work so why bother? Statistically, 80% of these resolutions are dead by early February. So why do we even make New Year’s resolutions? It’s because we have the desire to change something. So often our desire to change something results from being unhappy about something. By default, our focus is on what we don’t want more than what we want. It’s easy to begin the new year looking at what we didn’t accomplish or what didn’t work out.

Reflection is a good place to start, especially when you’re coming from a place of love and support for yourself. It helps to take a quick look back at last year. Consider and write down these thoughts:

• 3 or more of the happiest moments you experienced
• New things you enjoyed for the first time in your life
• The highlights of the year

Reminding yourself of these great moments is a way of celebrating the good you encountered last year and noting that even if you did not realize your goals, you have so many things to be grateful for. It is from this place of celebration of your last year that you can begin creating strategies to design your new year.

Here are a few steps that can be instrumental in helping you to take some of your dreams off the shelf and create your best year yet:

1. Decide what you want to manifest in your life this year. Be clear on your intention. Once you identify your intention, you can make that the theme of your year. For example, if your intention is to have more joy this year, Joy could be your theme.
2. Why do you want what you want? Knowing why you have a specific goal is truly a game-changer. Be honest about your why. Take the time to think about it. No one has to know your why, but you. Don’t allow anyone to deter or distract you from your dream. Your why is often that yearning that continues to tap you on the shoulder, no matter how much you try to ignore it or believe it’s not possible. What will it cost you not to do it.
3. Imagine what you will feel like when it’s accomplished. What will you feel like emotionally? Hold that vision and revisit that feeling often. Your brain can’t tell the difference between thoughts and reality. And guess what? There is scientific evidence to document that. That is one reason why “What you think about, you bring about.”
4. Believe that what you want is achievable and commit to receiving it, no matter how many times you failed. You don’t have to know how it will happen. You just have to believe that it will.
5. Move your feet. Take action to get there. As you commit to moving forward, your seeming obstacles will begin moving out of your way and opening new doors to get you where you want to go.
6. There are several studies that document the value of writing your goals down. However, apparently, fewer than 20% of people admit to writing their goals down. This is a classic case of the 80-20 Rule. Don’t you want to be in the 20%? Once you write it, make sure you keep it in sight.
7. And finally, be sure you are celebrating all of your wins no matter how small. If you have a gratitude journal, write that you’re grateful that you remembered to follow through on something. It also helps to make a list of what you’re proud of when you take action.

Keep in mind, the only way to fail is to give up. Keep going forward no matter what it looks like.

Last year I had a goal of finishing my first solo book by my birthday. One week before my birthday, it became clear it wasn’t going to happen, so I just extended my deadline to the end of the year and kept working. During that time a dear friend had a birthday gathering which would take me away from writing. Although I knew I could not make my original goal, I kept believing in myself and now my extended goal. At the party, I connected with the person that would help me get my book completed and published one day before my birthday. So, you see EVERYTHING is possible! Keep believing. Keep moving and watch the obstacles move out of your way.

By the way, my book is titled Awesome Aging 101 and is available on Amazon. Please check it out. If you have already read it and got value from it, please leave a review on Amazon.

Love & Light,

Renee