How hilariously ironic is it that it’s almost March and I’m JUST now getting around to writing a post about New Year’s resolutions?! I’ve had this post on my mind since before the start of the year,but with all that has been going on (which you read about here), I just didn’t have the time. I hoped I would be able to get it to you in time for the lunar new year (Chinese New Year- Jan. 31), but alas, I am late there as well! It seems that procrastination strikes wherever I go! Nevertheless! I am determined to bring this information to you, because I feel it would be as relevant on August 1 as it is on January 1. Moving on… 😉
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I know a lot of people tend to pish-posh New Year’s resolutions- considering them a colossal waste of time or something made in the spirit of the season and then easily forgotten. I, on the other hand, have always looked to my New Year’s resolutions as guideposts of sorts. Lofty goals I want to accomplish in (insert year here), and even if I stumble and fall along the way, those resolutions are there to get me more-or-less back on track towards achieving them. Sometimes I succeed, more often than not I fail, but I always make it a priority to make my New Year’s resolutions.
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The resolutions I have made in the past, though, I must admit weren’t always the most stellar. Some weren’t well thought out; others were just completely unachievable… you get the picture. So, I hobbled along doing the best I could… until the day I stumbled upon Katie Weber at Red Lotus Letter. You see, I’ve always had a huge interest in Feng Shui and how lining up your life with the energies of the universe can make a big difference in the fortunes (or misfortunes) you experience thereafter. (Don’t get me wrong, I don’t put put feng shui above the blessings God can bring into my life- I use it in conjunction with them. Like a one-two punch!)
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Anyway, Katie, just happens to be a feng shui expert and writes one of the most popular feng shui blogs on the internet. Not only that, but she has some killer advice for New Year’s resolutions! She refers to it as ‘Setting Your Intention with Feng Shui’ and I think that’s a really neat perspective in which to view it. I’m not making a ‘resolution‘ to change; I’m setting an ‘intention‘ to change- I like it! She says that when you set goals, keeping them in your head is all well and good, but writing them down gives them purpose… breathes life into them.
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As she puts it, ‘…they become more tangible, more real.
There is magic in writing.’
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Katie says writing down our intentions (i.e. resolutions) requires an act, a commitment. The Universe sees this commitment and sets the wheels in motion to help us achieve our goals. A sort of ‘God helps those who help themselves’ kind of thing. BUT… there is a caveat.
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As she puts it, ‘…the Universe helps us when we make efforts on our own behalf. When we decide not to take action and write down our goals or our wishes, we delay or postpone our commitment. This tells the Universe we’re not really serious.’
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That’s why it really IS important to make resolutions/intentions, write them down, and allow God and the Universe to help you achieve them! If you set yourself up for success, then you’re bound to succeed!
If you believe it, you can achieve it!
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Katie includes several worksheets in her Intentions Plan to help you get started. The first one, which really helped open my eyes, was My Financial Mastery Plan. It breaks down as follows:
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- 3 ways I can MAKE more money
- 3 ways I can SAVE more money
- 3 ways I WASTE money
- 3 ways I can take CONTROL of my money in 2014
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Seeing as how I’m a stay-at-home/homeschooling mom, this one was hard for me as I don’t MAKE any money but I do SPEND (waste?) the majority of it (I handle all bills/shopping, etc.). I do have some small ideas for bringing in bits of revenue here and there to help the family this year, so I did add that, and I definitely have ideas for saving (get back to couponing), limiting waste (no more dining out), and taking control (can anyone say budget book?). So this worksheet was successful all the way around!
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The next worksheet is My Personal Goals for 2014. She gives you 10 spaces (you don’t have to use all of them) and even leaves lines for you to explain them if brevity is not your strong suit (it’s not mine!). Here were some of my goals (in no certain order):
- Blog AT LEAST 3x/week
It’s a great outlet - Get healthy!
Exercise at least 3x/week, work at eating more fruits and veg, practice good food habits - Learn to live sustainably
Work to be more self-sufficient, make more products at home & enjoy the simpleness they bring - Make big moments out of small ones
Stop letting holidays pass by practically unannounced because I want them to be ‘perfect’ ‘next year’. Memories are disappearing while ‘next year’ is never guaranteed. - STRESS LESS!
Take time to unwind and decompress so that I can be a better wife and mother. - Embrace life!
Take on challenges I’ve never attempted before: sewing, cake decorating, jewelry making, maybe even knitting?
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Lastly, Katie include a worksheet called My Life Vision for 2014.
I am not afraid to share with you what mine said.
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I am:
Jennifer- mom/wife/teacher/housefrau.
My goal this year is to :
make it on my (our) own.
As as result I think, act, feel, and work as much as:
it takes to make our dreams happen.
My #1 goal in 2014 is to:
help my family get to a place where we don’t have to worry when we go to sleep at night.
My top 5 goals for the year are:
1. Become a noticed blogging presence on the internet.
2. Find a way to generate income for my family.
3. Lose some weight and find a healthy balance in my life.
4. Get my kids back on track/caught up with school.
5. Don’t sweat the small stuff.
As a result of this, I would like to earn/accomplish:
an offer to speak at a blogger conference (aim high, ya know?!)
But I would be happy with:
consistent traffic and increased followers on my blog.
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One of the other neat things Katie does is stick in a quarterly report worksheet, so you can go back to your resolutions every three months and write down any achievements, things you want to work harder on, etc. It’s a way to remain accountable to yourself- long after other people have abandoned their resolutions to the annals of their minds.
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I tucked my resolutions in a super special spot on my desk so that I can refer back to them often, refreshing them in my memory, to help keep myself on the correct path towards my goals. I know it won’t be easy, and I know I won’t be successful every step of the way. But here’s hoping that because I put them out there for God, the Universe, and all y’all on the interweb to see… then maybe, just maybe…. this time I might get lucky.
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Fingers crossed!
Till next time….
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