Did someone say 2022!?!
That’s right. The new year is just around the corner and November is the perfect time to plant the seed of your future.
Why November? Because December will be a blur. Holidays, hosting, shopping, visiting and, generally, making the magic of the season eats up the hours. Before you know it the calendar flips and it’s January. You hit the ground running and find yourself stuck in the same groove that had you aisled-in throughout 2021. Maybe that was a good groove and you want more of that flavour in 2022 or maybe you don’t. You won’t know until you take the time to reflect. November is the perfect time to hit the pause button and put some focused energy into remembering what it is you’re trying to accomplish.
Sometimes we get so focused on checking things off the list, fulfilling responsibilities and meeting deadlines that we forget why the heck we’re doing what we’re doing. We’re just caught in the daily current. In order to keep our heads above water, we just do what we have always done. It’s what we know. Choosing a new direction takes time and you just have to keep up with life’s momentum. Is it not true?
This is the epitome of stress. You literally find yourself in the human race, eating on the fly, running from one appointment to the next and always carrying a water bottle! And, the worst part, the race never ends! For health and balance, switch things up. This fight and flight way of living is not sustainable. You’ve got to put on the brakes.
The fight and flight side of the nervous system is the gas pedal of the body. The brake is the relaxation side. You’ve probably experienced relaxation as catching a movie, enjoying some drinks with friends, sitting in a hot bath or zoning out in front of the TV binge watching Netflix’s top picks. That type of relaxation is nice but not what is needed to plan your course for 2022.
Make the two into one. You need the alertness of fight and flight along with the peaceful, easy feelings that emanate from relaxation. This type of meeting in the middle is the foundation of creation. Fight and flight is linked to the left brain, relaxation to the right. Harnessing the strength of both in relaxed alertness brings the full power of your mind to the task.
Right now, lock in a date and time in November to commit to your future. This marks the moment to stop just going with the flow and adapting to your current circumstances. It’s time to CHOOSE your path.
Set aside two hours. Two hours will ensure that you don’t feel rushed…that you actually ease yourself off the race track to enjoy the R&R of this critical pit stop. Plan to be in a quiet location where you feel inspired and free of distraction. Start with your year in review. Write down some notes retracing:
- What happened in the past year?
- How do you feel about the life you lived? Was it meaningful? Does it speak to the life that you want to be living?
- What do you want to stop doing? Continue doing? Start doing?
Once you’ve taken the time to explore these questions, review your answers and pull them all together into one little word. That’s right. One word. This is the name of your path. Keep on course in 2022.