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| The Roman god, Janus |
Happy New Year! Welcome 2014!
Okay, okay... so I'm a couple of weeks late in my greetings. Still, it is a new year and well-wishes are always in order.
Do you know why the New Year begins in the month of January? It all started when this month of the year was named by the Romans after one of their more important gods, Janus. Janus was the god of time - specifically of beginnings and endings. As such, he was also the god of all types of transitions - birth, death, marriage, journey. Therefore doorways, gates and all types of portals were considered sacred to Janus, for to pass through one of these was to literally transition from one place to another.
Here we are two millennia later and we are still observing January the way that many Romans would recognize. Not that Janus any longer plays a role in our celebrations, still we pause and reflect as we pass through life, acknowledging that one span of time has ended and another begun.
Janus was frequently depicted as having two faces looking in opposite directions. In much the same way, during the month of January, we take stock of our lives, looking back to what the previous year brought us, and also looking forward, trying to anticipation what the next one will bestow upon us.One of the ways that we observe this time of transitions is assessing what didn't go so well in the past, and making commitments as to how we will change in the future. Well intended, we start out the New Year with a list of resolutions: to lose weight; start exercising, drink less, get finances under control, eat healthy... the list could go on and on, but you get the drift. Then a few weeks into the month of January - usually about this time - our resolutions seem to overwhelm us and begin to fall aside.
1. Set goals that are specific and attainable.
Let me illustrate with one of my own resolutions for 2014 - to write more. To make that very general goal work, I have made a commitment to write two pages a day of written material - minimum. I consider this attainable, considering that the writer Stephen King sets a goal of writing at least 10 pages a day. Two is reasonable for me.
2. Be time specific.
My goal of writing is very specific - writing something every day. Within that goal, I have set up a time frame for when I write and for how long I write.
3. Track your progress.
I've started keeping track of my writing with a small moleskin notebook. In it, I record the day and the amount written. It is a way of keeping me accountable to myself.
4. Reward yourself.
Goals become habits when a routine is established. I discovered that one of the ways I can routinized my behavior is to give myself a treat when my task is accomplished. Specifically, I tend to write before in the late morning and do not take a break until I finish my writing. Thus, my lunch becomes my reward - generally a bowl of homemade soup which I find very satisfying especially during these cold days of winter.
5. Make it public.
Tell others about your resolutions or goals. Don't keep it private. When you share your plan of change with others, first, it becomes more real, and two, it also holds you accountable to someone other than yourself. I told my family about my goal of writing at the beginning of January, and now I'm telling you. Help me stay on task!
6. Practice grace daily.
There are going to be days when we fail ourselves and miss the goals we set for ourselves. That's just the way it is! So you will need lots and lots of grace and forgiveness for yourself for when this happens. Then what? You start fresh the very next day and just keep plugging away until you've worn a groove in your life making something new an ongoing routine.
So what are a few of your resolutions for 2014? Share them with me and with others in the comments section.
Cheers,
Steve
P.S. Remember that the contest for the free Kindle giveaway is ongoing through January. If you have friends, family or colleagues whom you think might enjoy receiving this blog by email, then feel free to forward this posting on to them. To be eligible for the free Kindle, a person must visit my blog website - http://stephenarhodes.blogspot.com/ - and subscribe to it through the "Follow By Email" option. Also, you will receive a confirmation email from Feedburner which requests that you confirm you want this subscription. If you do not confirm, you will not be subscribed, so please do so.
The last quarter of 2013 had me losing both my parents. So by the time New Year's Eve rolled around, I wasn't very inspired to make resolutions, having grief wrapped around me like a blanket I did not want to remove. So, after reading this post and having made peace with the grief I felt on December 31, I'm thinking it isn't too late to make at least one resolution!
ReplyDeleteSo the one thing that would most benefit my life in every way is to be more cognizant of and forgiving of the auto-pilot function in my mind that judges the living you-know-what out of me for stuff that just isn't a big deal!
This is something I've been on top of for a long time but I seem clearer about it this year. So. One way to track my progress would be to make notations in my gratitude journal about the times I catch myself in self-judgment and then stop and make the choice for forgiveness and inner peace instead. One way to make it public is to write about it once in awhile at my blog.
Practicing grace daily around this issue is the very act of letting go of those harsh self-judgments.
Thanks, Stephen! Clearly, I deeply enjoyed your post!
Thanks so much, Sarah, for sharing. Blessings on your journey into this new year.
ReplyDeleteSteve
I have subscribed to the blog. Great post. I have suffered with CFS since 1983. I did not make 'resolutions' but chose a Word 365 (see my blog post http://preciouspagesbypaula.blogspot.com/2014/01/welcome-2014.html) I make simple daily goals and at the end of the day I review what I did, and what I did not and why. I learned this in the hospital last year where I spent 2.5 weeks that were the most terrifying of my life. I had B12 deficiency and cognitively my level of confusion rose to the point that I did not even recognize my own name and did not even remember being there for the first week. When asked a question I would know the anser in my mind and the wrong words would come out my mouth. I kept telling them to give me B12 shots (which they did not). (God led me to the diagnosis). When I got out I googled B12 deficiency and indeed there was my story. I cried through the whole YouTube video. I then went to the dr and got my levels checked and I was correct. I have pernicious anemia (another immune disorder) and it is said to be genetic. As I do not know anyone else in my family - I truly wonder if my Mom actually had Alzheimers Dementia or if she actually had B12 deficiency. They were surprised that she did not get it until so late in life. (late 80s) I will look forward to your future posts and I have invited several of my followers to like your page.
ReplyDeletePaula,
DeleteThank you for sharing your story. I'm glad that you found out about your B12 deficiency. I only wish it could have been sooner, given all that you went through.
I will be sharing my story with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome soon in a blog post.
Steve
I would like to make another suggestion - if you want followers you need to get rid of the Word Verification! It is the curse of death.
ReplyDeleteDo you have any idea of how to do that? My subscription service is through Feedburner and there doesn't seem to be an option to turn the verification process off.
ReplyDeleteSteve