I met with my Financial Adviser the other day and as I looked at my retirement portfolio (there will be no retiring anytime soon folks!), it was exactly where it was one year ago. For those of you that have investments, especially in the stock market…you know what I mean.
The market had a great first half, then a terrible third quarter, then back to pretty much January 1, 2015. As I reviewed my year, ha! No surprises…it was the same for me! Not to say I didn’t grow, have some darn good times, make a difference, see my sons blossom…all that occurred. And I am grateful, so grateful for every blessing, healthy day, time with my family, student, LP, SLP, graduate, training, all of it.
As I reflected…which in my life must be quick with a new puppy…I started thinking about the New Year and how we as a culture approach the changing of the calendar.
The term calendar itself is taken from , the term for the first day of the month in the , related to the verb calare “to call out”, referring to the “calling” of the new moon when it was first seen.
That’s perfect, …”to call out.” Because what we are calling out is a new moment, a blank canvas to create on, a new direction! And most of us really do approach the New Year that way. We think about what we want to accomplish, achieve, take on, create, shift, change in the coming year.
Our goals, “resolutions”, declarations, secret talks with ourselves are both tangible and intangible. Whether it is losing weight, getting in shape, buying a home, saving money, starting a business, creating a relationship. Or the internal desires; less stress, more balance, mindfulness, coming from love, or my declaration of coming from gratitude no matter what the conditions are that I have created.
Did you know that the most Googled search in the few days before the New Year was “how do I reduce stress?”
So, no matter how much we “know” that each moment is a blank canvas, that we can create something new at any time…this time of year beckons us to commit and take it on!
Now here’s the kicker! Even though we have new found motivation, focus and even that after Christmas sugar detox to support us, for a high majority of us, we slow down, or we falter or we get lazy or give up or just stop. Not always, but far too often.
Why? Its not that we aren’t amazing people or that we “didn’t really want it anyway”. It’s because we have to be INSIDE/OUT. What’s Inside/Out? Along with a great little movie by Disney and Pixar, Inside/Out means that anything we want to create in our life on the outside (money, abundance, relationships, success, health) requires a shift on our inside. Even less stress or balance requires a shift in our relationship with our circumstances and life situations.
Most human beings want something to be distinct or different in the New Year, but the only thing that changes is the calendar. Most people don’t “call themselves out” of their previous thinking or historical paradigm. So the ball drops in Times Square but they don’t shift or change the way they look at themselves, other people or their world.
The “motivation” or new energy ebbs and we are left with pretty much the same way of looking at life and living life.
Inside/Out requires us to reinvent ourselves. That generally sounds cool however is sometimes uncomfortable and disconcerting. The thinking, being and behaviors that got us to where we are today (as good as that has been) cannot get us to a truly unprecedented future.
When you shift the insides, the outsides shift. If you want to change your life, change your conversation (or the way you look at, view and interpret your life.)
But how? Through a transformational experience! You have already had many of these, for example: You got married, had children, got divorced, someone died, you almost died. All of these life events wake us up to a new way of being and living. Some are amazing and joyful, some are hard and heartbreaking.
However, to continue to grow, evolve, expand and create some kick-ass results, find a way to shift your Inside! Whether you dive into something that scares you like pole dancing, writing a book, starting your business, adopting a child or you throw yourself into a Transformational environment like WorldWorks (www.worldworkstrainings.com) find an experiential way to shift your Inside!
If you are a graduate of the WorldWorks Trainings, we have many ways for you to have an Inside shift, from graduate workshops to volunteer staffing.
And for all of your family and friends that are “up to” making their New Year’s Resolutions happen, share with them the idea of Inside/Out. I invite you to support them in transforming their Insides through the Intro, Experience and the Leadership Practice.
Our Inside/Out Intro starts next week, January 13. That week is my 29 year Intro anniversary…oh my…and thank goodness someone took enough time with me to “call out” my future. And the rest is my Her-story.
Inside/Out it is then! May your 2016 be glorious, joyful, abundant, healthy and spectacular for you and those around you! And come play Inside/Out with us!
With deepest gratitude,
Lisa