Want an Epic Fresh Start in Your Life Today?
So many people think January 1st is the beginning of a new year. There is always a party on New Years Eve. So many people are making New Year's Resolutions. Everybody jumping on the “New Year, New Me” bandwagon. Well, not me. I rarely feel fresh on January 1st, and trust me, it has been a long time since I stayed out all night partying to ring in the new year.
Here are the 6 Steps for your Epic Fresh Start.
Do you know when I feel excited about a new beginning? A fresh start? Springtime! Just look around. God is showing us everywhere that this is the time of a new beginning. Follow nature :) It will show you the way!
Step 1
Set your intention.
Definition of intention: An anticipated outcome that guides your planned actions, a determination to act in a certain way, an aim or a plan, something that you want and plan to do.
What is something that you want and are willing to take the actionable steps to accomplish this?
Anything that you do in life, has a better chance of success if you start by setting your intentions.
What is your intention for this Refresh? Get out your journal and write it down! Put it on your vision board. Make it real. “I intend to____''. This is whatever you want :) Here are a few examples… I intend to learn a new skill, take control of my finances, get more organized, make time for family and friends, take better care of my body. The possibilities are endless here. Make it whatever you want!
Here is my personal intention: I intend to stop being so hard on myself. I intend to do a refresh and go from being my own worst critic to my own best cheerleader!
Please share your intention in the comments below. We can do our Springtime Refresh together!
Step 2
Adopt a new outlook.
Once you have set your intention, next comes the important shift in your mindset. There is a reason that you have decided a restart is necessary in this area of your life. What is it that you didn’t like? What is the feeling that you have that's making you want to make a fresh start? Let’s use the “I intend to get more organized” as an example. Are you constantly telling yourself that your life is a mess or that you will never be able to conquer your clutter? This is where you need a new outlook or mindset shift! Catch yourself in the negative mind set and consciously make a shift. Start telling yourself “I can do it. I will do it. This is 100% possible for me!”
A deep breath and a fresh new outlook can change your world!
Step 3
Let it Go.
Oh boy. This can be a tough one. Let that shit go. This can be your most Epic change!
There is a C.S. Lewis quote that might help you understand how important this step is. “Getting over a painful experience is much like crossing monkey bars. You have to let go at some point in order to move forward.”
Holding on to a painful memory or story that is stuck in your mind is one major reason so many of us find ourselves stuck and unable to move forward in life. Sometimes, its physical stuff that we don’t let go of. But let's face it, that is because of the stories and emotions we have attached to the item as well. Letting go of this trauma, no matter how big or small your mind makes it out to be, is a huge step in being able to make a fresh start. We are doing this refresh so that we can move forward after all!
Some things are easier to let go than others. Here is a little trick that I learned about letting go. Think of something that has bothered you in the past. Nothing big. Just a little annoying but not so much that it pissed you off. It didn’t really affect your life for a long period of time. Example, sometimes the extended wifi router in my house just stops sending signal. Nobody knows why. It just happens. To fix the situation, you have to unplug it, wait a few seconds and plug it back in. You wait a minute or two and the signal is back. It actually happened while I was typing this. When this happens, it can be annoying but it's something we get over quickly. The fact that I had to reset the router will not ruin the rest of my day, week, month, year. The key is to acknowledge and remember how easy it is to let go of the feeling that the router not working properly annoyed me. Now, the next time that something starts to bother me, i can say to myself “let it go, just like I let go of how the router stops working”. Someone steals my parking spot… let it go, just like the router. I burnt the lasagna… let it go, just like the router. I hope you get the idea.
Obviously, there are much bigger problems that we are all facing. These are just examples. If you do have past trauma that you are having difficulty letting go of, PLEASE ask for help. Help can come from a friend, family member, coach, counselor, or therapist. There is so much help available, you just need to ask. Letting go and moving on is totally possible.
Step 4
Forgive Yourself.
Forgiving yourself is MAJOR. We all have a past and in that past there is stuff that we wish did not happen. From embarrassing moments to “wrong” choices, to hurtful words and actions that we have shot out towards another person, so much of it we wish we could take back or erase from our past. While we may not be able to go back in time, we can look back at the person that we were at the time and forgive yourself.
Being able to forgive yourself is a huge piece of self love. Are you mad at yourself for making a mistake in the past? Are you holding on to that mistake saying “If I only did something different? Why was I so stupid?” or anything like that? If so, you need to stop right now. Look back and realize that at that moment, you were doing the best that you could in that exact set of circumstances. You didn’t know what you know now. Stop beating yourself up and simply forgive that younger (even if it was 2 seconds ago) version of yourself. You have learned from the situation and now you are moving on. Moving forward to a fresh start!
Step 5
Replace an old habit with a new one.
Habits get a bad rap. A habit is simply a routine of behavior that is repeated regularly and tends to occur subconsciously. The definition says it tends to be subconsciously but it doesn’t have to be.
When starting fresh, a new behavior can really help solidify your change. Along with my intention of becoming my own best cheerleader, I have changed my morning routine. Before, I would set aside time in the morning for my meditation. I began to notice that this just was not working for me. I don’t know why, but I just wasn’t feeling it. I needed to do something else. Now, I spend that time doing fascia release. I lay on tennis balls positioned in those spots that are screaming to be released. This is my new thing. I am learning all about fascia and I will share more with you on that later. 10-15 minutes of that and I am good to go! Sometimes I do it again in the afternoon. :) I still have a meditation practice, I have just become more free with it. No more holding myself to the rule of meditation is at 7:00am. Sometimes the afternoon or right before bedtime works better for me. Sometimes I have even gone right into meditation after my fascia release. I am having fun living with less rules right now. Those rules served their purpose and now it is time to move on.
What is the new habit you are planning to add/change in your routine? I would love to hear about it in the comments below.
Step 6
Enjoy the New Outcome
The last step is to simply enjoy. When you start to put these steps into action, you will see the change happening. Just like the spring flowers poking through the earth, your intention will also come to life. Your only job now is to enjoy it! If you have gone through the steps of setting your intention, adopting a new outlook, let go of whatever is holding you back, forgiven yourself, and replaced old habits/behaviors with new ones, then it is time to SHINE! Enjoy this refresh and everything that comes along with it. I have a feeling we are all going to be amazed at how it feels.
In Conclusion
God shows us every Spring the beauty of a fresh start. You can follow these steps for a beautiful and epic refresh of your own this spring.
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Also, if your intention is to handle your stress and your to do list better, please check out my Secrets To Less Stress Here.
And please leave a comment below to let me know how things are going for you on your journey towards loving your life.