There is no denying it: July has snuck on us way and half of the year 2012 is already behind us. It’s crazy, isn’t it?
Doesn’t it seem like we’ve just celebrated New Year’s Eve, standing outside in the freezing cold, clinking glasses of champagne and putting together lists of all kinds of resolutions.
You may have had big goals or small ones, but you were full of determination that this year, the year of 2012, would finally be the one where you would not fall off the band wagon after only a few weeks.
Now, that it is 6 months later, let me ask you, in a very loving way, how far you’ve advanced towards achieving your hopes?
Have you given up on them after a week or two? Have you resigned and told yourself it’s not worth the effort and the dreadful life you’ve lived so far is not that bad after all? Have you gone full speed and your goals for the entire year have already been achieved?
If you’re a person of the latter category, then more power to you! You probably don’t need to read any further, but be sure to aim much, much higher next year. Promise? 🙂
If you’re a member of the former description, then don’t fret, it’s never too late to turn around and start anew.
You still have 6 whole months left in order to work towards your goals and make this year a phenomenal one; year that will serve as the base for the rest of your life and one that you’ll forever be proud of, cherish and remember as the one that made all the difference.
But how in the world do we reconnect to what seems to have already been long gone? How do we motivate ourselves when we’ve already left our hopes and goals behind?
It’s not that hard, really. It only takes 5 easy steps.
Remember your goals
Which resolutions did you make at the beginning of the year? Were they the usual ones like losing weight (which will never lead to fulfillment), quitting smoking, going to the gym more often, working less or finally learning that new language you’ve been wanting to do for ages?
Did you get a bit more creative and committed yourself to achieving goals that were in line with your current situation, as well as with your aspirations for the future? Did you tell yourself that you’d finally confront your boss about that promotion he or she had been promising for years?
Did you plan to break up with your partner because your visions for the future were just not in line anymore? Did you promise yourself to find a new circle of friends that will lift you up instead of tear you down? Did you set yourself a deadline to finish the book you’ve been working on for years?
Whatever it is, write all your resolutions down in order to have them visually present.
Become a Detective
Now, be honest with yourself and try to measure how much progress you’ve made with those goals before you dropped the ball. Did you lose a few pounds but then the jo jo effect set in and you’ve gained it all back?
Did you make great progress on your book, but then performance anxiety kicked in and you never touched it again? Did you go a week without smoking and then couldn’t take it anymore?
Reevaluate those forward movements and ask yourself, very honest, what happened that you suddenly stood still or even went backwards.
Don’t judge yourself and try to be objective. We all hit and miss. We all stumble. After all, we’re not perfect.
I had a major setback recently in my recovery, where I retreated into old and destructive behavior. This phase was definitely not something that was in line with my goal to recover fully in this year. But it happened and that’s OK. I’ll live and I’ll move on. I know what happened and I’ve made my peace with it.
Playing detective in order to find out why you lost your way only serves as a way to figure out your next move.
Recommit
If your goals are still valuable to you, if they serve a purpose and you’d still love to achieve them in the next months, then you have to commit to them once again. However, this time, the commitment has to come from a very deep and urgent core!
Envision it to its minute detail. How will you feel once you hand in the manuscript? How will you look once you’ve started to go to the gym 3 to 5 times a week? How proud will you be once you walk out of your boss’s office with your new contract? What will you see once you finally visit Paris for the first time in your life?
What difference will make achieving your commitments make in your life and how will it affect your relationship with yourself and others?
Write all of it down and I mean all of it. Then commit yourself to walking this rocky road until you’ve arrived at this emotional and empowered state of mind! Commit as if the survival of the human race depended on it!
Don’t let your mind tell you why you can’t do all of these things, but tell your mind why you can’t, will and must.
“Man Belongs Wherever He Wants to Go” – Wernher Von Brau
And you, dear reader, you belong on top of your dreams!
You have 6 months. 6 months to rock your world. 6 months to transform your life and 6 months to keep the promise that you have given yourself just as long ago.
As far as I am concerned, I still have to finish writing 3 books, create one dancing course and, my favorite, the Body Image Revolution Program! I will achieve it. There is no doubt in my mind.
Don’t give up on yourself. Don’t rely on excuses because you know what?
If I can do all these things while still actively fighting a nasty, life-threatening eating disorder, then you can do anything you put your mind to!
I believe in you. Do you too?
