New Year 2016

Happy New Year 2016!

I love the enthusiasm for fresh starts and change that comes with New Year's Day, but I am the only one who feels like you are meant to have it all sussed out before the ball drops on December 31?  Well, I say boo to that!  Here's a new year's resolution we can keep: permission to grow, adapt and change whenever.

While I'm not one for resolutions, I do have some ideas big and small (daily meditation, return to photography, focus on wellness) that I'm excited to implement.  Before I do, I'm going to take this week to hit the reset button.  I don't know about you, but the past year felt really intense!  It was a year in which "I can't remember the last time I felt on top of things" felt like a mantra, and I am not a person who buys into the culture of busy.  I don't like feeling overrun by daily life, yet that's where I quite often found myself all year long.  2016 does not have to be a repeat of that, and it won't be if I can help it!

During the holidays, I started listening to some of the many fantastic podcasts out there.  One in particular resonated with right where I am now: The Good Life Project episode called "Close the Books".  The nutshell version is you make the time to thoroughly examine the past year--the positives, the negatives and the neutrals.  What worked?  What didn't?  How can you learn from your experiences?  What is the take-away?  Then, once you've gone through the whole year with mindfulness and care, you "close the books" on it, allowing a fresh start for the year ahead, applying what you have learned and feeling ready to continue to move forward and grow in new ways.  Have you heard of this before?  Have you applied it yourself?  Who's with me?

Warmest wishes to you, wherever you may be!  Happy New Year!