New Year Resolutions…
We have made it to 2021! Well done. Last year was anything but easy. 2020 presented us all with challenges, abrupt change, and transitions, amongst many other things, and you made it through. As you reflect on the last year, there are things you may want to leave behind, while there may also be valuable insights and lessons you learned to carry with you into the year to come. Do you know what those things are for you? What do you want to leave behind and what you would like to bring forward?
Approaching a new year can help us capitalize on aspects of our lives that serve us well to create the breakthrough we desire. Often, it is a time many people use to analyze the habits that aren’t working for them as well as to determine what they want to accomplish in the near future. It’s an opportunity to reset as one chapter closes and another begins. No matter what our relationship with new years resolutions may be, they represent the opportunity for a change in the areas we are dissatisfied with and the chance for renewal.
What have resolutions meant to you?
The common thread when setting new years resolutions is that they are difficult to stick to. This is not because the outcome is undesirable, or that you aren’t willing to work hard to reach your goals, but rather because the avenue we use to achieve our wanted results is not conducive to our capacity. Some examples of resolutions might include wanting to lose 50 pounds, eating vegan while we’ve lived off of a diet of fast food, quitting the smoking habit that’s been a daily routine, or even saying no when we are regularly overcommitted. These agendas are all admirable but problematic when we seek change by setting goals that are bigger than the energy we have to give to them. In doing this, we easily fall sway to the trap of inconsistency in our pursuit, becoming disappointed with ourselves as a result. We end up throwing in the towel by February because it’s too exhausting to carry on. If this sounds familiar to you, you aren’t alone! It is a common experience among many of us and why setting resolutions may not be the best way to achieve the renewal you are hoping for.
With all we’ve been through both globally and individually last year, it’s safe to say 2021 meets us all in a unique place. As such, it presents the chance to approach the year differently than we ever have before; to be innovative in our pursuit of life transformation. There is an invitation to approach a fresh start, not through resolutions, but through determining manageable rhythms to increase your well-being, helping you flourish to your greatest potential. Resolutions tend to create a sense of identity surrounding your ability to fulfill them.
When we meet our resolutions, we see ourselves as accomplished and successful.
On the flip side, if we aren’t able to uphold our commitment to ourselves to fulfill our quest, we feel defeated, seeing ourselves as failures. Rhythms are integrated ways of life, based on the identity you already possess, which aid to your ultimate well-being. When you operate from a place of security in your worth, the rhythms you embrace will allow you confidently grow into a thriving individual, experiencing the renewal you desire. Rhythms are actionable routines, or rituals, for your mind, body, and spirit, that can be applied to your life, increasing your health as a whole person.
Prior to assessing what these are for you, it’s helpful to first reflect on what a life of increased well-being would look like. Take a moment to envision yourself at your healthiest, most effective, and prosperous state. Begin by asking yourself a list of questions such as;
“What do I look like? How do I feel? What dies my thought life contain? What is my temperament? How would others describe me? etc”.
Gather a robust picture of yourself blooming in this manner, expanding your view of all that you could be and don’t hold back. Your answers will contain valuable information to assist you in formulating rhythms to allow your vision to come to life. With the picture you’ve curated in mind, start to inquire what it would mean for you to develop into this person. Ask yourself questions such as
- What do my daily tasks entail?
- How do I care for myself?
- What methods do I use to process my emotions?
- What self-development practices do I follow?
- Do I engage in regular journaling?
- What rituals do I utilize to keep my heart and mind open to new possibilities?
- What is my morning and evening routine? How do I fill my schedule?” & the list goes on…
As you tease out these ideas, you can brainstorm and formulate a unique set of rhythms specific to your vision. Allow your creative juices to flow, as if there were no limits. Through the process, be as specific as possible so you can identify a clear pathway to fulfill how you’ve captured your future. Aiming to make your rhythms practical, simple, and time-effective will increase your ability to remain consistent, aiding in your ability to carry them out through the year.
It’s is completely understandable if defining rhythms feels intimidating if you’ve had past experience with failed resolutions. Keep careful attention to not attach your previous record with your present pursuit, reminding yourself of your worth prior to anything you accomplish.
As you develop your newfound course of action, it’s important to remember that positioning them in alignment with your personal desires is a key ingredient to your success. As you become self-assured, you will gain clarity for what methods you can incorporate daily, weekly, quarterly, or yearly, allowing your vision to come to fruition. In doing so, you will guard them against fading away.
When your rhythms are in synch with the picture you’ve developed, coupled with a time-efficient structure, the chances for you to stay dedicated to them will increase. As a helpful safeguard, ask yourself what might get in your way and prohibit your consistency. One possibility is the misconception that, in order to pursue renewal for your well-being, rhythms must be complicated. This is often an unhelpful belief carried over from our past where we formed resolutions larger than our capacity, proving them to be difficult to attain. Complicating things for ourselves is not a requirement and won’t support us in our quest to keep consistent.
You have the freedom to make them as simple or as complex as you wish them to be, dependent on your energy levels. Additionally, you may be tempted to compare your recently discovered rhythms with other people’s lives. Hold fast to your worth and remain in alignment with what you have envisioned for yourself, letting the expectations to follow in other’s footsteps fall to the wayside. You weren’t meant to be anyone else and that is what makes personal rhythms so beautiful as they allow your unique personality to shine.
As you approach this new year, grant yourself the permission to throw past experiences of setting resolutions out the window. Experiment with this new technique, determining manageable rhythms to increase your well-being as a whole person. Knowing your identity, and holding true to your worth prior to all accomplishments, fill your mind with a vision for who you are at your best. Ideas will naturally start to formulate in regards to what rhythms you’ll want to implement to allow your vision to become a reality. Your capacity, time, and energies are precious resources so let your blueprint be structured to fit into the unique ways you are wired.
As you weave these rhythms into the fabric of your life, following your personal outline, you will begin to know them as a firm foundation for your aspirations to grow, and a springboard to launch you forward reaching the renewal you seek. They will become a part of who you are, rooted in your worth, rather than an out of reach reality. You will begin to flourish as the thriving individual you’ve imagined. Here’s to embracing rhythms over resolutions and living to your fullest potential.
Happy new year!
By Emily Conway
Connect @: discoveringyou.co
Email: [email protected]
Insta: discoveringyou.co
My name is Emily Conway. “Discovering You” has been a dream in the works of the quietness of my heart for years now; I am overjoyed to see it come to life. I run this coaching practice with the intention of aiding my clients in discovering and knowing their truest selves. I believe having a knowledge of who you are is the foundation of relating well with yourself, others, and God. When you do the investigative work of development in your personal formation, you are equipped to live healthily in all aspects of your life- emotionally, physically, relationally, mentally, and spiritually. You can then readily step into your purpose with boldness. That’s right, you have a purpose, and yes, you can boldly walk in it. This is not an overnight journey and requires intentionality and pursuit, with long-lasting reward. This process is not one meant to be done in isolation, but with the help of a trusted guide, and I believe, with the help of the Holy Sprit. That is where I come in. As your personal formation coach, using the tool of the enneagram and the power of the gospel, I will guide you through an in-depth process of self-discovery. This will drastically open your perspective to your unique character traits, strengths, weaknesses, and show you the path of growth your personality type needs to live whole and well, taking your place in the world. We will work together toward your personal development, establishing healthy relationship dynamics, and finally partner your personality with the purpose of your life. My goal is for you to have the tools you need to enrich your personal-formation, understand clearly what purpose is, discover and explore the passions on your heart, and produce growth by partnering with God to see them come to fruition. All of this is so that you can live into your fullest potential. Sounds like what you need? I can’t wait to journey with you!
