New Year’s Resolution – Or Personal Evolution?

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Lao-tzu.

We all do it, most of us at the beginning of every year. I am referring to making those usual New Year’s resolutions such as planning to exercise more, eat less junk food, spend more time on yourself, etc. If you look back over last year, how many of those many resolutions did you manage to live up to or put into practice? Maybe a few? Or maybe none? Be honest with yourself.

With too many resolutions and those not backed by real feeling or motivation, we set ourselves up for overwhelm or failure. Instead, try to use the perspective of “evolution” on the personal development level.

One of the meanings of evolution is “any process of formation or growth; development.”   The idea of a process — of growth and development occurring over a longer time period and not bound to be accomplished and completed within the span of that particular year is much easier to embrace.

This year consider the concept of personal evolution. It’s certainly an optimistic and positive step to lay out your goals (which we should be doing anyway on a consistent basis all year long). But instead of trying to foresee and attain an entire journey having to be made and completed by the end of this coming year, simply try to visualize a first step or two along the road you are planning to take. The bottom line is, start small.

Choose your broader goal and envision a series of steps that you can take toward achieving it. Let your “resolution” or your plan be to just get moving into Step 1 of your individual goal. Visualize it clearly. Create some affirmations for it, hold it in your heart center, and focus your inner energy on clarity of vision and purpose.

Once you make the move and actually set foot on your road, let the rest of the process unfold and evolve. Steps 2, 3 and 4 may happen more easily and naturally, and all in the right time. Be joyfully open and let your intuition guide you — and remember to enjoy the journey!