I’m curious, how was your New Year’s? Does the holiday mean much to you? Are you a habitual resolution maker? Or perhaps you’ve been burnt by too many years of unused gym memberships purchased enthusiastically on Jan 1. Well, we all know that January 1 doesn’t contain any more magic than the rest of the days of the year, and the idea of New Year’s resolutions is a societal construct not a biological one. So, please go ahead and forgive yourself for any year when you’ve been incredibly ambitious on January 1 and lost your way come February 1.
Now, that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s talk about the power of awareness and commitment. Time is a pretty powerful construct in our lives, so it’s no wonder we use the year marker to celebrate and motivate ourselves. One of my favorite practices is writing my year-in-review where I look closely at everything I’ve struggled with and accomplished and consciously milk the juice of those experiences and find the top 10 learnings I am aware of. After that is out of my system and on paper, I begin to ask myself, “What’s next?” How can I build on what I’ve learned and take my life to the next level? What’s missing? Where do I want to go now? Is a major course correction in order, or am I headed in a direction I feel good about?
That next part is so fun. I brainstorm and meditate on the skills and learnings I want to have by the end of the following year, and I look for themes among them that can serve as my touch points, my mantras, my signposts, in case I get lost along the way. This year my themes are self-trust, responsibility and service. Last year they were acceptance, liberation and leadership.
What comes next is pretty terrifying, but I get a little turned on by fear, so don’t let that scare you away! I look at what am I willing, able and enthusiastic about committing to. What are the things that I can say, “HELL YES, I will do that this year!” What things do I want so badly that I am willing to climb out on the cliff where the thought, “Oh shit, that is kind of scary to commit to because I am not 100% confident I can do it, and I don’t want to be disappointed with myself,” mingles with the idea of, “But I want it so bad, I’m willing to take the risk and make a promise to myself anyway and do whatever it takes to make it happen.” This place is where the power of commitment lives. I’d love to see you there, and I’m ready to support you making 2014 the year when, New Year’s resolutions be damned, you commit to something big and make it happen!
I’d love to support you through this process and here are a two of my favorite ways to do it:
- The 1-day intensive. No, I won’t make you walk over hot coals, but it will be intense. We’ll start with some thorough mining of the learnings you took from last year. Evaluate if your life currently feels in alignment with your values, and if not, redirect your life’s trajectory or seriously upgrade your values. We’ll then look at what is in the way. Digging through shadows, old stories and competing commitments, there will be space to release these with the option of hands-on work if that serves you best. Finally, we’ll map out your 3 themes for the year, decide what you are committing to and set up systems to support you in achieving your wildest dreams.
- The month-long spiral. Identical process as laid out above but accomplished in smaller chunks over a month’s time due to distance, availability or preference. (We don’t all work well at that level of intensity.) Depending on location, this can be in person or via phone or Skype. I think of this as a spiral because we will keep our focus on the centerpiece of commitment while exploring the full landscape of your life, one curve at a time.
This year I have committed to service above all things. If you are ready to step fully into yourself and the power of commitment this year, please contact me now.
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