Thoughts on the New Year

I know we are well into January, but I am always trying to catch my breath from the holidays in the first few weeks of the month. It takes me a bit to be still enough to think about the coming year. I am not a person who is big on New Year's resolutions, but I do like to look back and review the past year and reflect on it. You cannot know how to get where you want to be if you don’t know where your starting point is. I like to look back at my photos and peek at the last year's calendar. It is amazing the things that you forget even happened. It is great to look back on the highlights of the past year as well as the hardest parts to reflect upon what you learned from the past year. Write those moments down in addition to what you are grateful for in your life. It is such an eye-opener to think about before you reflect on what you want the coming year to look like.

One of my favorite books is “Miracle Morning” by Hal Elrod. He has an idea in the book that I love. It refers to the “Potential Gap.” We all have a gap between who we are now and who we potentially could be – the best person God made us to be. This is a great time to think about that gap and strive towards being the best version of yourself this year. I also love that he emphasizes not thinking about all the things we did not do right but also thinking about the progress we have made. We all have a "Potential Gap" that is individualized in size and unique to us. We are all created for a different purpose with different gifts and weaknesses. This is not a game of comparison.

Now, look ahead. Think about the coming year and some things you could add, little steps at a time, to make your gap smaller in all areas of your life.

·      health/wellness

·      school/career/financially

·      relationally/family/friendships

·      fun/happiness

·      spiritually/meaning and purpose

Make a list of small actions you could do to grow and move forward in each area. It is the little daily things that add up to progress. Just even thinking about this and doing one thing makes it easier to do the next thing. Remember life is a journey, not a destination!

Happy belated New Year!!!