Look back so you can look ahead
It’s that time of year when we all reflect on all the ‘shifts’ in 2014. For many of us 2014 was the first time since 2008 that we felt a positive shift in our future, our income, our health, and our general well being.
To some, it got worse as we get older and for others, getting older gave us new insights and commitments. No matter how you felt about 2014 it’s time to plan what you are going to do differently in 2015 to make Shift Happen for yourself. No one is going to do it for you.
When I work with my clients I help them ‘discover new opportunities using existing resources.’ Perhaps it’s time for us to all consider what we have, what we do well, and how we can leverage that resource for new ‘shifts’ in our lives?
Years ago I was given a small note pad and the instructions were to ‘write sideways’ and don’t follow the lines. I have never forgotten that message. Try it in a meeting and watch how many others follow your lead. Don’t be afraid to be different. It’s your life and only you can live it the way you want. Write Sideways to make your own opportunities.
Remember: Opportunities often come disguised in the form of misfortune, or temporary defeat. If failure is not an option, neither is success. Failure is how we learn what not to do again. Insanity is doing it again and expecting different results. 2015 is a fresh start. It’s a new sheet of paper. Make the best of it.
Turn the ruled paper sideways and don’t follow the lines.
Start where you are.
You’re at this moment, standing right in the middle of opportunity.
Act on your dreams and you can have them.
Your destiny is not a matter of chance, it’s a matter of your choice.
It’s not something you wait for, but rather something you pursue.
Don’t wait for extraordinary opportunities.
Seize common occasions and make them great.
