New year, new me? How about right now

Year after year we’re bombarded with ideas of drastic changes that individuals would like to make to usher in the upcoming season. We often hear sentiments like “new year, new me”,  “I’m leaving so and so far behind me this year,” or “I’m going to start that diet plan I’ve been putting off.”

While self-reflection and setting goals are an essential part of personal growth, it’s imperative that we remain realistic with our shortcomings, set manageable objectives, and realize that change is a series of ebbs and flows and requires resilience as setbacks will arise.

We often pressure ourselves to reach milestones by certain periods of time and that causes undue pressure, which leads to giving up on ourselves and falsely thinking we aren’t capable of accomplishing tasks; frequently it is the methods we’re using that needs readjustment.

Don’t wait to change. Start tackling seemingly large responsibilities by formulating manageable ways to get there. For instance, if your plan is to switch careers, it helps to initially thoroughly research your desired career then perhaps gaining an apprenticeship or internship in that field to gain experience of how it will be to be performing the tasks of that job and the nature of that business.

Start where you are. You don’t have to have the best of everything to make positive change. If you have a pen and paper, you can jot down the steps it will take to get to your destination. If you know someone in the industry you’re vying for, it may help to have coffee or lunch with them and discuss the best ways to break into that field.

Put fear aside. It’s scary to try something that can potentially fail. Yet, it’s necessary to put complacency aside if you’re to reach higher heights. Acknowledge your trepidations but don’t let them stop you.

Don’t let them get to you.  Anyone that has made any type of radical change in their life faced some level of opposition.  If you let that stop you, you’ll always wonder “if I had done that, where would I be today?” don’t do that to yourself.

Embrace the suck. Things don’t go as planned, most of the time. One minute its cake, then the next moment you’re wondering what went wrong.  Regroup however you need to and keep your plans at the forefront of your mind.

Monitor your mindset. Negativity and anxiety are fast ways to kill the dreams living inside of you. Its cliche to say think positively when it may not be that easy for some individuals so get the help you need via talk therapy, prayer, meditation, or leaving behind attitudes and habits that don’t serve you.

Watch your company. Though you are the main person responsible for how you react to outside circumstances, spending time with those who are not in alignment with you will just have you going nowhere fast.

Execute. Don’t overthink it. Just go forth and be great.

See below some thoughts circulating on new year’s resolutions for 2018: