As featured in Inspire by Psycle – 21 January 2016
Who do you need to be to live an inspired 2016?
The media is full of two things in January: the importance of setting new years resolutions and all of the ways that you apparently will fail in doing so. Evidence based research tells us that most people trying to stick to resolutions will last only 24 days. They even have an especially depressing media term. ‘Fail Friday’ is apparently when reality hits most people, alongside the stick that they start to use for self flagellation over the months to come.
So what’s the solution? First of all always, always start from a place of self-love rather than dissatisfaction.
I am here to tell you that you are already incredible and inspiring just by being yourself. The question is how can you let more of that shine? How can you move away from default switched off living, towards a path of created purpose-full living?
The second part of the solution is to set a theme, or intention for the year rather than rigid and ultimately, blame and shame filled resolutions. And it’s not too late in mid January, February or even in September, because every minute of every day is an opportunity to live into who you can truly be.
Last year my theme was ‘Connection’. I wanted to set myself the challenge of finding a deeper connection to myself and to others also see how much more richness I could find in life, as well as how much more I could create in my work from that place. It was quite a ride that lead to a huge amount of growth, an incredible increase in my income, far deeper relationships and touching a magic of life that I could only have imagined previously.
This year I’m making it less about the external and bringing the focus much more into myself and my body. My theme for the coming year is still around connection to self, but this time in the form of ‘Radical Self Care’. By that I mean how I can micro focus on my body, home, spiritual health and general internal wellbeing in order to create an even richer experience of life.
What is your theme?
Have a think about it. if you were to set a theme for this coming year what would it be?
These three questions could help:
1. What belief could I introduce this year that would make the biggest difference in my life?
2. How would I like to feel?
3. What is it that I could focus on now that would have REALLY created a difference in my quality of life by this time next year?
One of my coaching clients set their theme as ‘A Year of Abundant Living’, another was ‘Speaking My Truth’, another ‘Balance’. What would you like more of, what would create a stretch for you? What is it that by living intentionally into your theme will give you so much more of what you want in your world?
What does it mean to you and for you?
When you have set your theme spend time either in quiet contemplation with yourself, or with a coach and write down all the things that come to you around your theme. For me it is things like, creating a daily meditation practice, specifics to do with how I manage my time and run my business, books that I will read, a retreat that I will go on, how I will parent differently, a more nurturing focus on exercise and sleep…
What will yours be? It may be useful to keep a running list of ideas on your phone that you can add to when you feel inspired.
And remember, it is impossible to fail at this. Everything you do or don’t do is just useful information – be awake to what it means for you, think fluid rather than rigid, take the feedback, and most of all enjoy the exploration.
Ask yourself regularly “who do I need to be in this moment to live into my theme more fully?”And most of all have the most fun you can have by being you!