Ringing in the New Year!

Can you believe it? New Year's Eve already! I'm pretty sure I say this every December 31st, but wow does time fly. Do you remember what you were doing last year at this time? Have you accomplished your resolutions from last year? I bring this up because I know some of you may be panicking (or maybe that's just me), thinking of a zillion things you need to accomplish in 2014 and how THIS is the year that everything comes together.

Now just for second, let's put things into perspective. Do you know why the majority of New Year's resolutions fail or are forgotten about once February hits? According to Timothy Pychyl, a professor of psychology at Carleton University in Canada, says that resolutions are a form of "cultural procrastination", an effort to reinvent oneself. People make resolutions as a way of motivating themselves, he says. Pychyl argues that people aren't ready to change their habits, particularly bad habits, and that accounts for the high failure rate. Another reason, says Dr. Avya Sharma of the Canadian Obesity Network, is that people set unrealistic goals and expectations in their resolutions.

But WAIT! Of course your going to lose weight, quit smoking, give up alcohol completely, become more organized, get your finances in order, raise perfect children, climb Mount Everest, and travel to Europe. DUH! I'm not saying these can't be achieved but wouldn't it be, dare I say, simpler to just pick one. Just one resolution. One big hairy audacious goal (BHAG for those who have read the book From Good to Great by Jim Collins) and throw all of your passion and soul at owning this goal. Really think, what is going to light your soul on fire? What one thing will you make sacrifices for to achieve? That's how I feel about the half-Ironman this year. Very much out of my comfort zone but I'm doing the damn work to ensure I rock the sh*t outta this thing. Is it easy, NO! Will it be worth it, YES! Can you do it with your goal, YES again!

Write your goal down! Post it on places your can see it; mirrors, in your office, on your fridge. Plan small steps you can take every day to get closer to "IT". Dream about it, talk about it, visualize yourself achieving it. Immerse yourself in your dream and GO DO IT! You really are capable :)

Now that I've got you thinking, breathe and just have faith. Everything you need to achieve is already inside you. And if setting multiple goals works for you than that's great. There are no rules. It's learning to place your attention on what matters most to you and enjoying the process along the way. I remind myself daily that life is about the journey, not the destination. If we're always focused on the end goal, we could miss some pretty awesome things happening all around us ;)

Tonight we can graciously bid farewell to 2013 and toast to an extraordinary 2014. This really IS your year!

Many blessings and love,
Sam xo