I'm literally spending this last day of 2017 flopping back and forth between absolute conviction that 2018 IS THE YEAR I finally nail those goals that have been accumulating for years and absolutely rolling-my-eyes that I would even entertain such a thought.
If you too have a complicated relationship with New Years resolutions, I invite you join me in an experiment for 2018: Aim low.
I know you're supposed to aim for the moon so when you fall you land among the stars, but what if I just want to aim for, I don't know, the roof of my building? Because that way I'll at least have a good view of the stars, and be closer to them than I was before, and doesn't gradual improvement sound better than constant, abject failure?
OK, that might be a little harsh, but I'm essentially trying to combat that feeling that no matter how much we've accomplished and no matter how far we've come, it's easier for so many of us to focus on what isn't done yet, where we think we've fallen short, and how far ahead everyone else seems to be.
So how about instead, on the eve of this new year, you do these three things along with me:
1. Celebrate three things you're proud of creating, experiencing, building, sharing or being this year.
2. Acknowledge three things (including people and other living creatures) you are deeply grateful for receiving, experiencing or witnessing this year.
3. Choose one thing you'd love to create, experience, build, share or be this year.
4. (Sorry, four steps, I just made this it's own step:) Name one infinitesimally small action that will get you closer to having it happen.
Actually, five--we need one more step.
5. Fill out this permission slip:
I, [your name], hereby give myself permission to take the absolute tiniest steps this year towards what I want, and to declare each step a success. I give myself permission to want what I want, and to move towards it consistently while measuring my success by the fact that I am in action and consciously creating what I want, rather than by the size of my steps or the benchmarks I hit. I give myself permission to acknowledge progress, both internal and external, the way I would if I were cheering on my best friend. I give myself permission to believe that am of value already and always, and am a unique gift to the world exactly as I am. I may even want to read that last sentence over again, several times a day. And I give myself permission to be in JOY, wherever I am on my list of goals, my to do list or other people's expectations.
I would LOVE to really see you write out your responses. In fact, POST your responses in the comments and I'll hold your intentions for 2018 and hold the space for you to make them happen. And if you send me your mailing address along with your responses, I'll mail you something that will truly help you make this year a year of Wonder!
Here, I'll go first:
1. I'm celebrating how often I've managed to read to my kids at bedtime this year, and the things I've done to support them in and out of school, emotionally, creatively and academically, and how I've honored the time I want to spend with them which has also allowed me to release a lot of the guilt I used to feel when I needed to get work done. (I'm counting all that as one...) I'm celebrating the birth of the #alreadywonderful movement, and the Day of Wonder at which it was launched--all of which simply did not exist until I brought them into the world. And I'm celebrating my conscious, consistent efforts to keep both of those things JOYFUL instead of stressful, a burden, an exhausting drain, because I have learned from experience that that's exactly what my exciting ideas can become if I'm not mindful and purposeful about what I'm doing. Yay me!!
2. I am deeply grateful for the powerful, loving, straight-talking support I've received from so many miraculous people this year, including but certainly not limited to Anne Rose Hart, Carolyn Herfurth, Geoff Laughton, Jennifer Urezzio, Patty Lennon and Nat Couropmitree. I am deeply grateful for being more myself this year than I've ever been in my life, which has also made all of my relationships with my family more honest, relaxed and fun, which has also allowed me to be even more grateful than usual for every part of my family. (Yes, I cheated. That was really two gratitudes in one sentence. Feel free to cheat in this one too.) And I am deeply grateful for getting to witness how freaking amazing, creative, big-hearted and visionary people on this planet are--and for getting to not only witness a lot of it up close, but to be a part of people's birthing transformational Visions.
3. I would love to create a way for thousands of people to experience The Big Wish and the 10 Minute Miracle this year so they can take the things they really want and finally make them real, share the things with the world that only they can share, and experience the joy and freedom of being who they really are and creating what they're meant to create.
4. The infinitesimally small step I can take to make this happen is to write down the idea for the 10 Day Miracle challenge I came up with today. The next two tiny steps will be to lay out how it will work, and then decide when to start it.
5. I, Jennifer Zwiebel, hereby give myself permission to take the absolute tiniest steps this year towards what I want, and to declare each step a success. I give myself permission to want what I want, and to move towards it consistently while measuring my success by the fact that I am in action and consciously creating what I want, rather than by the size of my steps or the benchmarks I hit. I give myself permission to acknowledge progress, both internal and external, the way I would if I were cheering on my best friend. I give myself permission to believe that am of value already and always, and am a unique gift to the world exactly as I am. I may even want to read that last sentence over again, several times a day. And I give myself permission to be in JOY, wherever I am on my list of goals, my to do list or other people's expectations.