Preparing for 2021
2021 IS HERE!
Wow! And alot has happened in such a short space of time!
I remember when we entered 2020, many persons had very hopeful aspirations but by the time March 2020 swung around the corner, hopeful aspirations quickly dissipated and turned into #2020cancelled.
In this climate of uncertainty as we have entered 2021, I want to share with you some practical tips on how we can prepare our heart, mind and spirit for 2021.
Personally and professionally, my 2020 experiences forced me out of my comfort zone into a place of unprecedented growth.
What I found amazing is that even though this place was at first sight, unfamiliar and scary to me, it stretched me.
Most importantly, it revealed to me that all the experiences and people God placed in my life were like fertile soil for the seed of potential to grow and blossom.
This has by no means been an easy journey....and there's still more growing, stretching and refining to be done. However, I learnt that my attitude or response to the challenges influenced the rate of my growth and development.
How is this relevant to you?
Well, we are looking forward with great anticipation for what 2021 holds but do we really know what 2021 has in store for us?
It is important that we prepare ourselves for this new season of our lives.
Practical Tips for Preparing for 2021
When we talk about preparation, we must take into account, these four aspects of our being-mind, body, soul and spirit.
I am focusing on the issue of preparing our heart, mind and spirit because I have found that we usually focus on working on our bodies while neglecting other aspects of our being.
Once we pay attention to developing our thought life, heart and spirit, working on our bodies will be a much easier journey.
Preparing Our Mind
Do you know that our thoughts, emotions and behaviours interact with each other? Most definitely!
Our thoughts, emotions and behaviours are always interacting with and influencing each other.
When a situation occurs, the story we tell ourselves affects how we feel about it, which then influences our response to it.
This story is based on how we interpret the situation and our interpretation is based on our past experiences and preconceived notions.
As people say, "Wa' yuh telling yuhself?"
Our thoughts and interpretations give meaning to situations and experiences. And guess what? This is important for us to make sense of our world.
However, we must manage our thoughts and interpretations because inaccurate assumptions can be harmful and detrimental. I dare say, it can be counterproductive to our growth and progress.
Tip 1: Be deliberate and intentional about managing your thoughts and interpretations of a situation. Avoid jumping to conclusions or telling yourself a "story" until you receive clarification or reliable confirmation.
In so doing, we give ourselves an opportunity to evaluate our reality more clearly, make healthier decisions, which brings us closer to achieving our goals.
Preparing Our Heart
Our thoughts about a situation affect how we feel.
When we experience emotions, we also experience physiological changes in our bodies. For example, when we experience fear, our body enters into a fight-or flight response, which sometimes manifests itself through increased heart rate, sweating and muscle tension.
Just like our thoughts, we usually do not notice our less intense emotions. However, these emotions still impact our thoughts and behaviours.
Have you ever heard about the straw that broke the camel's back?
Well....if you live life continuously ignoring or paying little or no attention to your emotional heart condition, you can have an unhealthy explosive reaction to a seemingly simple situation.
Ignoring the feeling does not mean it's going anywhere.
Tip 2: Do not allow your emotions to rule your life or decisions. Acknowledge your emotional experience, explore the source of negative emotions and adopt healthy and safe ways of releasing those negative emotions.
By making consistent and active attempts to manage our emotions, we are training ourselves to make decisions and respond in ways that are closer in alignment with our life's goals.
Preparing Our Spirit
It would be remiss of me to speak about preparing ourselves for 2021 without speaking about preparing our spirit-which is an integral aspect of our existence.
Acknowledging our spiritual existence, helps us to live a more purposeful and meaningful life...it gives us hope in seemingly hopeless situations that highlight our human limitations.
Amidst all of the distractions of life, many of us have allowed our spiritual life to descend into a state of dereliction. That broken connection with our Creator often leads to feelings of hopelessness when the storm rages and waves threaten to overcome us.
Tip 3: Make a commitment to focus on your spiritual growth. Consistently carve out time for spiritual re-connection and refreshing.
You shouldn't do life alone!
Moreover, preparation requires discipline, discipline requires commitment and commitment requires desire.
We can't control 2021 but we can control how we respond to the situations that might come our way by preparing our heart, mind and spirit.
On behalf of Bynoe-David Consultancy Services Limited and from my family to yours, I wish that this new season of our lives brings about growth, renewal and purposeful living.
Call or email for your free initial 30-minute consultation or to book a counselling session
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