Tag: accomplishments

Preparing for a New Year

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As I prepare for the closing of one year and the opening of another I like to collect my journals. Each morning I write three pages of whatever comes to mind.* Sometimes it’s short stories, or a letter, or just complaining about whatever has me in a funk that morning. Some days it’s all about the weather or good news. It depends on the day. But often littered inside all of this writing there are gems – lists, to do items, goals. Dreams I have that I haven’t examined more deeply. These ideas may be used to write your resolutions.

Now at the end of the year, I am reviewing my journal entries and looking for goals and ideas. Sparks that I have had in the last twelve months that I either wish to make progress on or would like to add to my plans for 2023. I also do a word-web and find what is most inspiring or rising to the top of my list but we’ll talk about that in another post. What is most important is the focus on what I’ve already put on paper. I am highlighting and documenting these items on a list – if they were important enough to write down once, they’re important enough to write down again. 

My strategy is to combine all of these ideas into a list and then separate that list by topic – I like my resolutions to fit into several areas of wellness:

Spirituality

Physical Health + Fitness

Mental Wellbeing

Social circles – Family + Friends

Community + Charitable Works

Career

Financial 

Looking at my goals and where they fall in this list it shows me where I’m focusing my energies. And perhaps where I need more growth in the coming year. If my list is long and heavy in career but I only have “take more walks,” in my physical fitness area, I know that fitness needs a little more focus. Of course, these will never all be equal, there are some areas that are harder and some years where we’re just not ready to tackle a big project – like spirituality. These areas all require work and attention in order for us to live balanced lives. The goal here though is not to look at these as tasks or errands. If anything they are guide posts.

Will I achieve everything on my list in 2023? Absolutely not! I didn’t finish this work in 2022 and chances are I won’t get to finish everything on my list this year either. However, it does give me a place to start. It gives me an opportunity to see where my interest and focus has been in 2022 and to show myself some gratitude because littered in among the dreams for the future are also my accomplishments. Seeing my accomplishments highlighted (in a different color) feels pretty great. It’s incredibly empowering to look over a year of writing and see how much I’ve grown, to look back at happy times or see how I worked through challenges and obstacles. 

However you choose to organize your resolutions or plans for the coming year, I hope you take some time to yourself to take stock of how far you’ve come. I know I am always proud and impressed by the work I have done in a single year. The next year will bring its own challenges and opportunities. I hope we all come to it honestly and authentically, aware of who we are and what we are working towards. When we know what we want we can align our steps and plans to achieve it. 

This tool is just one of the ways I clear space and organize my strategy for the coming year. It’s time consuming but also a labor of love. A gift I give to myself as the year winds down. A little space and time to reminisce and reflect on who I have been. Which gives me better insight into who I hope to become in the next year. 

May your New Year’s be peaceful and serene. May your resolutions scare you just enough to inspire you to work hard. I wish you balance, light, and love in every day of this New Year! I look forward to seeing more of you in 2023. – M

*Morning Pages is a concept created by Julia Cameron. If you want to learn more I highly recommend her book, “The Artist’s Way.”

Happy First Birthday Blog!

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A long time ago when I was in college, I wanted a tattoo. It was trendy and many of my peers were doing it and so I felt the desire that so many people do, to get a little ink. Well, I heard a story from a family friend who got her first tattoo on the back of the bus on the way to Woodstock – original, not 90’s Woodstock – and I don’t know how one gets a cooler backstory than this. Anyway, she shared that now that she is older she does not remember what the tattoo was originally. Also that it is safe to say that no matter what the tattoo was intended to be it now most closely resembles a lop-sided eight ball. 

With this story in mind I decided that I would wait. If I wanted the same tattoo in the same place on my body, in the same size for a whole year then I would get it. Until then, I would just stick to creative piercings. Well, suffice it to say, I never wanted the same tattoo in the same place for more than a year. It turns out, that when you think you’re being original you start seeing that “original,” idea everywhere. The trinity symbol and Irish knot that I admired, showed up on rings, necklaces, and the thighs of friends. The symbol was likely everywhere all along, not just on the doors of my childhood church. But nevertheless I never noticed it so many places as when I wanted it to be unique and my own. I never got the tattoo and now I am grateful for it – as my body has grown and changed over time, I am grateful not to have my own lop-sided eight-ball to remind me of how much change has happened over the years. I’ll leave the photo albums to their own business.

The only other time I have used this rule has been with this blog. I started this blog as a test, to see if I would be able to stick with it and find a theme by writing what I know and what I think. I figured I would find my path as I went along. First, I want to thank all of you for joining me on this ride. I want to sincerely thank you for reading, writing, and engaging with the material, it has meant and continues to mean the world to me. I believe the act of creating only comes full circle when we share it with others and hopefully it touches or transforms the world in some small way.You have been a part of this circle and I am grateful beyond measure. 

You have watched and helped this blog to grow and transform. It has gone from sporadic posts at random times to regular posts at predictable intervals. I have written weekly as much as possible from the jump but now we have our regularly scheduled posts coming out in a timely fashion. I am learning this work as I do it and I am grateful for your patience as I strive to improve and grow. 

That said, unlike the tattoo that never was, this blog has stayed the same and I have stuck with it for a year. Which means that it is time to invest in the work and the community that it has drawn into my life. I’m very excited to share that this means I will be adding some exciting new content, branding colors, domain, and a logo. These are small things to the world but also my own little ways to tattooing this site into our shared consciousness. I hope you’ll let me know how you like the updates. Pleas also let me know how we can improve and make reading, sharing, and visiting this blog a joy and more easy for all of you. My goal is to make the site as fun, hygge, and useful as possible. Thank you for being with me for this first year, I am truly grateful. I can’t wait to share all the exciting things that are coming in year two! 

Cheers to another year of blogging and sharing. Thank you for being the other half of my circle and letting the words I write into your heart and your head. It is a privilege for which I am truly grateful and honored.