Overcoming, Breaking Through, and Reaching Your Potential

If you are reading this, that means you made it through another year of life. Wow, what a blessing! Many of us look forward to setting goals to help us improve upon last year’s accomplishments. But in order to move forward, we must first reflect on the past. A year of life can be a great teacher: good lessons, hard lessons and some bad lessons learned. It is so important to think about what you learned over the last 12 months of your life. Below are a few things to think about that have helped us over the years to make sure we are making each year better than the last.

What Should I Bring with Me?

The first step is to ruminate on the positive. Ask yourself what you learned in the previous year. Dwell on the things you are most grateful for. Think about what you are fighting for and pinpoint the good things you’d like to carry into the new year. Remember, positivity begets more positivity. Consider what you can build on. What do you want more of? Dream without limits. More financial success. More peace of mind. More wellbeing. More quality family time. More responsibility. No matter what your more is, it’s achievable through proper planning, intentional action steps and unwavering follow through. Root yourself in understanding and know that a life of abundance is a life worth living and you have the potential to see it through.

What Should I Leave Behind?

The next step is to isolate the parts of last year that need to be left behind. Life is composed of highs and lows, both of which result in various emotions and memories. While it’s beneficial to treasure the positive, it’s equally important to be disciplined about eliminating the negative.

Gather any painful conversations, traumatic experiences and harbored resentment and make the decision to let go of the baggage they bring. Holding on to bitterness and resentment toward a person or situation is like drinking poison and wanting someone or something else to get sick. Understand that bitterness is hazardous for your mind and heart. In order to be well, you must forgive, forget and let go. If you have faith in your life, instead of allowing the resentment to eat you up inside, pray for help in replacing all the bad feelings and thoughts with grace and love.

If You Want to Move Forward, Stay Forward Focused

The final step is to remain forward thinking. The objective of sifting through your year to separate the good from bad is ultimately to build toward bigger and better. The exercise of reflection helps you determine which thoughts and behaviors are worth repeating. Those repeated actions then become habits and the health of your habits determine the height of your potential. Because we believe in health in all areas of life (physical, mental, spiritual, financial, relational and business), we know that positive habits contribute to the well being of the whole. Therefore, it’s vital you keep the exciting possibilities of the future on your mind and make the necessary changes to reach your goals.

The conclusion of a year of life is a great time to pause and reflect. New year, new beginnings is a popular adage that we all can stand behind, but remember that you don’t need to wait for the emergence of a new year to have a fresh beginning. As reflective people, we are constantly analyzing life and drawing lines in the concrete (concrete being more permanent than sand that can easily be washed away). When we step over those lines we are free to move forward unburdened and unafraid. Whether it be January, June or December, it’s never too late to enact change. As you go, continually set clear goals in the areas you’d like to improve and follow through with determination and focus. Make it a great year. We believe in you!