Creating Your BEST Year Yet
Jan 1, 2019
“Everybody can be great...because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.” Martin Luther King:
For many years I set new years’ resolutions. You know the ones where you make a promise to yourself to change something in your life you don’t like. Lose weight, floss daily, quit smoking (yes, I smoked….many decades ago), pay off debt etc. There is nothing wrong with these goals but I no longer make these part of my New Years’ rituals.
You see, one of the meanings of the word resolution is the action of solving a problem, dispute, or contentious matter and most of the resolutions are about fixing yourself. The problem: YOU are not a problem. You don’t need to be fixed. You can upgrade, you can improve, you can reveal a greater you. But you do NOT need to be FIXED. Resolutions are typically guided by the egoic mind, by the belief that something is wrong with you and they reinforce the conditioned beliefs that you are not … (fill in the blank) enough based on someone else or society’s conditionings, beliefs and domestications. They lead to reduced expectations and the fear that you don’t measure up to the standard that the world has created. Resolutions are almost always based on self- judgements and self-criticism. They are NOT based on self-love. I’m not saying that you cannot make choices that allow you to make positive changes in your life but do it because you LOVE YOURSELF and not because you Loathe yourself.
Instead, for the last 2 decades, I make New Years Intentions. Intentions are guided by self-love. Intentions are gentle and forgiving. Intentions are created due to a deep longing to make a change, not a “should” or a requirement. They are usually sprung from the heart and are a powerful recognition of being in alignment with your truth.
With the deep knowing that we are interconnected, when we set intentions that are loving and from our heart wisdom, we acknowledge that we are setting these same intentions for the collective in the world and, therefore, create powerful healing opportunities for the world.
My intentions for this year: Serve. Love. Trust.
When I remember the power of these intentions, I can ask myself with each choice that I make: Am I serving from the highest place with love and can I trust in this process. If the answer is NO, I gently explore what feels out of alignment and what do I need to do to re-align with my intention. If my answer is YES…full speed ahead, I am on the right path.
Here are some other intention suggestions that could come from your highest truth and be a powerful healing for the world: peace, joy, abundance, health, prosperity, harmony, connection, courage, freedom, kindness, gratitude, humility, curiosity, compassion, forgiveness etc.
If you do not have clarity on your intention, here is a meditation to help you to reveal what is longing to be acknowledged and revealed from your higher self:
Take a comfortable posture. Close your eyes. Begin to soften into your body and into your breath. As you allow your breath to massage your heart, ask your heart “what do you long for this year?” (Listen without filters. Write down the first word that comes into your awareness.). Trust that this is the truth of your being when it is in alignment with your heart.
Return to your quiet meditation, and now ask “what does the world need to move away from suffering?” (listen without filters and write down the first word that comes into your awareness). Trust that this is the truth of your highest self in relation to the world.
Allow yourself to be surprised by what comes up for you. This is an opportunity to step into your co-creative expression in service of the world.
After your write your intentions, place them in a location where you can be reminded often throughout the year. As you move through your days/weeks/months, remember to use these intentions as your GPS of how you are showing up in the world. They will remind you of what is most important for you during this year and give you an opportunity to check in with your truth. When you acknowledge your intention given any decisions, choices or behaviors, do they align? Do you feel good? If so, keep up the good choices. If not, how can you re-align?
Next, although it is important to get very clear about your intentions, which are your WHAT and your WHY, it is equally important to release the HOW which means not attaching to HOW the intentions show up. The Universe is all set up to work out that aspect. Your peace of mind will be eased when you release the HOW and you will be able to see the sprinkled effect of your intention when you let go of it needing to look a particular way.
Finally, gratitude is the magic ingredient that allows you to acknowledge how your intention is already present in your life and you begin to use the law of attraction to bring more of it your way. Daily journaling about your intention and all the ways that it is showing up, all the ways that you get to practice it etc. will be a powerful catalyst for practice. Remember to be grateful for the opportunities that allow you to practice your intention even when your mind does not appreciate the events. As an example, if you intend to practice forgiveness this year, you may be given opportunities to forgive a situation or person. These will be the critical times to remember and re-align with your intention rather than curse the situation.
May your 2019 be aligned with service, love and trust. With Love, Diana
Diana Lockett is the founder of Anjeli Yoga Teaching Academy, Re-Alignment Life Coach, Leadership Coach and Co-Founder of the Elephant P-O-O Project, Writer, Teacher and Life Adventurer. www.Dianalockett.com
