How much effort should we put into our New Year’s resolutions? In other words, how much resolve should resolutions need?
January 4th and another New Year begins. Always a time of reflection and new starts. How many people are starting their new year’s resolutions feeling over-full in every way from the festive season? Everyone full of enthusiasm, gym memberships going through the roof, chocolate sales going down!!! And yet, by February, often these resolutions have fallen by the wayside. Eating healthily feels boring, you realise that your gym membership is costing you about £50 a time, old habits start to creep back in and you feel that sense of disappointment in yourself. A familiar cycle for us all?
So, as I sit her on the first day back to focusing on Genergy after the New Year I am asking myself if I can create something new this year. Something different and sustainable and even fun! There is something about the energy of New Year’s resolutions which is about deprivation, stopping doing things or doing more things which are ‘good for us’. Even writing that phrase I can feel the hard work behind it. Why are things that are good for us never as much fun as the naughty stuff?! And why do the two things have to be in different boxes? Jonathan has been asking me what I want to be different this year or if I want to set any resolutions, and I’ve been reluctant to really say anything concrete. It was only this morning that I realised that I don’t want my intentions this year to be in a box or to feel restrictive. I want them to feel free and expansive and like they will really positively add to my life rather than take away from it.
So, as you read this, tune into the resolutions or intentions you have set. Notice without judgement how they feel. Do they add to your energy or deplete it? Do they feel exciting or like a ‘should do’? Do they feel heavy or light? Do you really want to do them and do they feel exciting… and like you can’t wait to get going? If they don’t then the chances are that they will have fallen by the wayside come the cold days of February!
For myself, this year is about creating life in a different, more integrated way. And, I notice as I write this that I am struggling to find the right words. Even the word ‘integrated’ feels like it has an old energy about it and takes conscious effort and work. However, what I am intending is that I can let all the pieces of my life flow easily and effortlessly together and that the energy of one piece sustains and grows the rest. The Cattells are a family for the first time this year with the arrival of our beautiful daughter, Ella Rae, and our gorgeous Labrador, Rosie. Jonathan and I also run Genergy and have our own interests and needs as individuals. If you looked at it on paper, you’d think that we have a lot on our plates! And yet, when I spend time with Ella I feel a true sense of expansion, creativity and connection to the world that then expands me as an individual and enhances my work. And my work adds to my energy and sense of what I am about in the world which I then bring back to my family. A virtuous circle.
I first noticed this when I was pregnant last year. At first, I was nervous about coaching clients when I could feel the baby moving inside me. Would I be distracted? Would it bother them? How much could I allow the baby to impact on my work? Would I have the energy I needed? And, the wonderful thing I discovered was that when I allowed the baby to be part of my energy and the work I was doing, I was a more powerful coach than I have ever been. She became part of a greater energy in the interaction and encouraged me to be less attached, more creative and more connected to the bigger potential of my clients than I could have been without her. On one level, what I was doing was less important because the baby was the most important thing happening in my life (whereas my work had previously always been my baby!) and yet, in other way, because I was unattached and connected to this bigger piece of creation my clients made bigger shifts! It was quite an amazing experience and a big lesson for me. I was more me than ever before and it was wonderful.
Coming back to my intentions for this year….. To be in flow. To be brave. To be fit and strong and healthy so that I have maximum energy for the year. To be truly present in- and enjoy every moment with my daughter who changes so fast every day. To love my work and to allow the fullest expression of me – wife, mother, passionate people-developer, business owner, lover of people – into everything I do. To be more successful and fulfilled than I have ever been. And, when I feel into this, the individual pieces have more energy. Yes, I want to get back into exercise and get fit but I’ll do it an easy way. I’ll eat healthily so I have energy but I won’t deprive myself of the odd piece of chocolate either. And I’ll celebrate all that I achieve.
So, tune into what you really want this year as your biggest, most creative, most expansive self. What would you really love to be true at the end of the year? What really expands you and your energy? What is going to be FUN and bring you joy every day? And, then see what feels right to commit to. Not from a sense of responsibility but from a feeling of developing you and becoming even more of the person you want to be. If it feels like hard work, reframe it or ditch it. Let’s get over the ‘shoulds’ of a traditional January and enjoy this new beginning for what it is. A time of fresh starts, new energy and renewal.
I can’t be put in a box or divide myself into pieces of home and work life and neither can you if you really want to be you. Enjoy every facet of who you are and allow it to flow. I can’t wait to hear your adventures - check in with me so we can see how we’re doing!
Here’s to a magical 2012. May you surpass your biggest dreams.
Love.
Lisa
