We are fourteen days away from 2010, and for some reason, (and I know that I am not the only person who feels this way), my intuition is telling me that something profound is going to take place this upcoming year. There are many groups of people who I am involved with for the purposes of masterminding and brainstorming, and the quantity and quality of ideas has reached new levels in the past few weeks. But with this being said, there is still something unsettling about this occurrence because every idea that was proposed is for next year. There was nothing even close to pertaining to ending this year STRONG and doing something that has never been done before. The reason I bring this to your attention is because I believe that almost everyone considers December to be a “write-off” month. We are consumed by holiday parties, New Year’s, vacations, gifts, and the one area which does not usually get the attention that it needs and deserves, is OURSELVES. Although I do not have research or science to back up this statement, I am going to share my philosophy, because I believe there are more things that are put off until next month during December than at any other time during the year. All of a sudden we get busy, and as a result of our “busyness,” we begin to postpone exercise, business deals, intimacy, and time for ourselves.
On December 1, 2009, I published a blog post entitled, The New Year Starts Right Now, and my rationale was to open your minds to taking ACTION today on any resolutions that would have been set for 2010. The reason I discussed this concept is because history is the best indicator for the future and resolutions do NOT work. We often propose these goals to ourselves in the beginning of December and do not take action for weeks. We lose impulse, we lose excitement, and we lose the drive to make a change.
I want to make one thing clear because this blog post has nothing to do with the New Year, and instead, has everything to do with living your life to its fullest potential; in which seconds, minutes, and hours are consistently recognized, as we realize that anything is possible when we choose to live in the now. I have discussed the concept of starting with the end in mind, which is a strategy that will benefit you when it comes to the manifestation of your resolutions, but what you must realize is that miracles will only take place when you are exhibiting present time consciousness and are immersed in each moment. When we are ALWAYS looking ahead to the next thing that we “have to do…” we fail to notice many of the wonders which are taking place today. If you truly want to have the 2010 that all of us believe it will be, then you MUST, and I repeat MUST, end your 2009 in way that you have never done before.
This needs to become part of your way of thinking because at 11:58pm on December 31, 2009, there is still a chance that miracles could take place in your world because miracles happen in seconds. Maybe you desire to find someone to share your life with, and as result of present time consciousness over the next few weeks, you find this individual. Maybe you yearn for a career transition in order to enable you to be in alignment with your purpose, and over the next two weeks, you connect with someone who can make this a reality. Maybe you desire to eliminate your depressed way of looking at the world because you realize that it is impeding your quality of life, and over the next few weeks, a revelation takes place and your perspective is shifted.
I can already predict what the skeptics are thinking because these examples might come across as something that would be considered fantasy, fictional, and unrealistic. I am sure that there will be people who disregard this blog post and do not allow it to become part of their existence over these next two weeks. But what I must proclaim once again is that this message has nothing to do with the New Year, nothing to do with the next two weeks, but rather everything to do with how you live you life on a daily basis. When we “write-off” time, as if it were an expense on our income statement for tax purposes, we lose seconds that will never come back. This is the intent of this message because what I am here to tell you is that regardless of whether you have this awakening right now, and start living the next two weeks like never before, TIME is something that is more precious than any monetary unit you will come across over the course of your life. My suggestion for you is to allow this message to echo in your mind, and when you begin living in “tomorrows” moment, ask yourself this question in order to become conscious in the NOW:
What miracles am I missing this second?
What does this mean to you? Please leave a comment.
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{ 19 comments… read them below or add one }
Anything worth doing is completed in the NOW! Otherwise it becomes less of a priority while time gets cosumed by the wind. Going with the wind is a choice. What would you like to do today? Make it a great day. Feels good to act now! RCC
I love this!!! Anything worth doing is DONE in the NOW!!! Amazing Roy, absolutely amazing..!!!!
I totally agree! I’ve been thinking about this topic ever since I read “The Secret,” because the author and the people she’s interviewed all talk about this “living in the now” mentality. It occurred to me not long ago that one thing in particular may be holding me back: I have framed quotes all over my room, one of which says, “All in good time.” I bought the card and framed it initially to remind myself to slow down and be patient about all of my goals…that to reach these goals, it will take time. However, after reading “The Secret,” and initially thinking about this concept of “living in the now,” I realize that by postponing these goals, as you wrote about in this passage, I’m not allowing myself to feel how it would to reach these goals NOW, instead of in the future.
As you wrote about, I think a lot of people do this: they are waiting for the “right time” to make changes in their lives, aka. the new year. If we all try to make a conscious effort to mentally visualize how it would feel to have all of the goals we desire RIGHT NOW, they will, I believe, become easier for us to accomplish, as we will jump start our motivations to reach these goals.
Great topic for this passage!
This is such a profound response Jen and I so appreciate your willingness to be transparent. This is kind of a catch 22 because the quote you have posted on your wall “All in good time,” is completely valid and one that I resonate with on many levels. But like many cliches, the interpretation NEEDS to be expanded upon in order for its true value to present itself in your world. For example, let’s pretend that there is an individual who is yearning to find love. If they followed the “All in Good Time” philosophy, there is chance that they would be sitting on their coach at home waiting for their soul mate to knock on their door. This is where “All in Good Time,” does not lead to results because we must also understand that ACTION must be taken in the NOW for anything to manifest. Therefore, I believe that we need to create a hybrid of both cliches which would look like this….
LIVE IN THE NOW AND REALIZE EVERYTHING HAPPENS IN GOOD TIME!
This means that we must live to our fullest extent, enjoy the journey, and realize that the destination will eventually arrive as long as ACTION is consistent and directed to where we want to go….
Thank you for your wonderful contribution!
I love this discussion and agree 100%. My partner and I almost pushed off our new fertility product offerings until the new year, thinking December would be the write-off month and we would not get much attention when we announced the new offerings. We decided to take the chance and take action now vs. waiting for the new year. I have to admit, now that it is all announced we are going to “write-off” the last couple weeks of December, but glad we took the effort in December to get the new products done. We have already had great reaction to the changes and additions we made and has created positive momentum heading into the new year, vs. trying to restart a car in the cold!
I love this story because it defines using all of your precious seconds and NOT writing any of them off. Most people would have waited for the NEW YEAR to launch a product, but in all actuality, there is nothing NEW about the NEW YEAR besides for our perception that something is changing. Therefore, we must do it now, do it now, do it now because time is of the essence and we need to live in the moment!!!!
Enjoy writing off the next couple of weeks because you earned it!
Jared
Thank you so much for your post I read it yesterday and at the time I had just said to myself “I want my goal for next year to be to increase my fitness and decrease my weight” and at that point I wrote of the time left in December to get started on this and decided not to exercise that day. Then I read your post and it kick started me into action and although I only did a little bit of exercise at least I did some and didn’t write off the whole day. And it has definitely spurred me on even more as I bounced out of bed today to do some exercise before work. So not a second has been wasted today thanks to your post inspiring me so thank you
Tracy…this has brought a smile to my face and a tear to my eye because you DID IT! You should feel so proud of yourself because although my message may have been the catalyst, YOU were the person who made the commitment! I can sense that something profound will manifest in your world so keep on keeping on and never lose site of what makes you…YOU!
Have a wonderful holiday season and very HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Future Predictions…
“I will tell you your future!” that familiar Inner-Voice said. (That is the kind of phrase that the Voice knows will get attention amid the constant chatter and activity of the inner mind.)
“Listen while I tell you what can be….. what might be….. and what will be.”
“This upcoming year will be the most important year of your life… so far, because all the years in the past have already been lived as fully as you were able to at those times. It is what you do or do not do this year that will predict your future.”
“I will also tell you something that is a certainty for you next year.” the Voice continued. “It will be a year of change. Change for yourself, your family, your country, your planet.”
“In fact, there is never a year where changes do not occur. It is the way of life, the way of evolution, the way of the physical universe. And, since change is something you can definitely count on happening this year, I recommend that you utilize your option to choose the direction some of the changes will take. If you don’t choose and then act on those choices, the direction of change will be made for you, and you may not like it.”
My attention began to wander off onto other distractions. What the Voice said was an accurate forecast for my future; but, like many fortune tellers, the predictions were common sense and generalizations.
“Would you like very specific predictions for your future?” The Voice whispered.
My attention snapped back to full alert…. Would I win the lottery, get a new job, fall in love, reduce weight?
“To obtain a preview of your future simply make a list of the goals you want to achieve,” the Voice said. “Then visualize them daily with desire, belief and expectancy. Work at the inner levels of mind to get guidance and insight, and in the physical world to create and act upon opportunities to bring about the desired goals.”
“It has been estimated that most people will achieve 90% of the goals that they work on persistently. The problem is 90% of the population do not set goals. Their future is unpredictable and often not to their liking. It is not enough to simply know your future, it is what you do to create your future that counts.”
The Voice then added, “Happy New Year!”
Jerry Seavey, MindBridge International NLP Training Institute
http://www.mindbridgetrainings.com
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Jerry…I absolutely LOVE this story. This captures everything that the New Year is all about and the most disturbing aspect is the last fact that “It has been estimated that most people will achieve 90% of the goals that they work on persistently. The problem is 90% of the population do not set goals.” If we as a country do not do things differently this year, then we as a country will have a 2010 that is exactly like the prior year. In order for this to become a reality, we must all play our part, and when our efforts are combined the paradigm shift will take place…
Thank you so much for your contribution and I look forward to your feedback as we progress!
WELCOME TO BRANDENTITY!
One of the most important points made in NLP (Neuro Linguistics) is in making the distinction between a goal and an outcome.
A goal is something still in the future, where you are here in the present but are aiming for a specific achievement in your desired future, (such as in aiming your bow and arrow at a target’s bulls eye). And this can be valuable and often preferred to being a ‘leaf being blown about by the winds of fate’, or the ‘victim’ mentality with little choice or control over the effects.
The NLP concept of an outcome is when you perceive the goal ‘as if’ you had already achieved it, how it will be experienced and the effect it has on you, others and on your life and environment. So, even though it may not have fully manifested in the physical world… yet, you experience it, subjectively, as if it has already been accomplished. Perceiving the ‘future’ as if it is already in the present’. Something like the 2000 year old middle-eastern goal strategy that taught, “pray, believing you have already received, and it shall be so.”
This means you can think about and plan for your desired future and still be here in the now. But please remember, if you are being now – here you are also nowhere!
Isn’t the space-time continuum interesting to explore… that is one of the most unique and powerful qualities and abilities of the human mind.
NLP has many powerful processes that use time lines and time distortion for positive and worthwhile benefits.
Well, it’s time for me to move into my next now, NOW…
Jerry Seavey
mindbridgetrainings.com
This is a fascinating comment and we are extremely congruent on the way that we think! I have been an advocate, in all of my speaking engagements and seminars, that in order to achieve ANYTHING in life, you must…START WITH THE END IN MIND! This is a philosophy that I many of the great philosophers have discussed and something that Steven Covey focuses on during the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. We need to literally put ourselves in the place where our goals have manifested, feel the emotions, experience the excitement, recognize the achievements, and then reverse engineer the process back to where we are today. With this being said, we must also combine these efforts with LIVING in THE NOW which means that we must remain conscious to the experiences that take place in our world so that once we actually reach out “end” (accomplish our goal) we will be aware of our success and celebrate the journey!
Absolutely AMAZING contribution Jerry!!!!!
see it, say it, do it, nuture it, appreciate it, – every moment-every day- all the time!
God defines us by our circumstance- He is limitless ie our circumstances are limitless- Carpe Diem!
SEIZE THE DAY!!!! Great job Kathleen…..
why wait to set goals, we never know what is round the corner. learn to live each day as if it were your last. remember that time can not be stored, once its gone its gone. spend your time wisely and make every 60 seconds count !!
I have only just a minute
Only sixty seconds in it…Can’t deny it, can’t refuse it…I will suffer if I loose it…Give account if I abuse it…I’ll be blessed’ when I use it…Joyous if I know to choose it…I have only just a minute…But a destiny is in it…DO IT NOW, DO IT NOW, DO IT NOW!!!!
Thank you for your wonderful message and make sure to read this blog post that I published about time because I believe it will resonate with you on many levels (http://www.jaredyellin.com/2009/10/saving-a-buck/)
Have a very HAPPY and HEALTHY NEW YEAR!
Great discussion about ending STRONG in December Jared, thanks for getting us thinking.
Personally I live fully today with the future in mind. Each day I desire to finish strong, doing my ultimate best. Not always meeting my expectations, however I’ve learned that is to be expected. Life happens.
Typically I have learned that two words describe whether you will achieve your goals or not, Persistence or Procrastination. December is a superb time to identify those goals where persistence paid off and procrastination caused them to lay dormant or incomplete. Often there are a lot of incomplete activities still in the “to do” pile. Lots of starts and not nearly enough follow-throughs is what many of my clients struggle with. Why? People are energized and motivated in the beginning, yet for most individuals it takes focus, support and determination to finish what you start.
What I notice when I encourage my clients to reflect on the past year, which December allows one to do in preparation of the conception of New Years goals, is that typically a person expected too much and imagined they could perform at superhuman capacity. Thus reflection on reality allows us to reassess what happened in the past year and identity the valuable lessons learned. Count your blessings and be grateful for what you DID DO! Then you can move toward the future with fresh energy and wisdom. Otherwise you are no more than a repeater.
Change is inevitable, whether you are in control of it or your circumstances are controlling you. Those who embrace change, learn from mistakes and successes, and are willing to risk journeying into the unknown with courage, certainly will be met with personal growth, valuable experience and ideally live a life full of passionate purpose and rich relationships.
I once read about how the people in the olden days used to have so much more time to reflect when they traveled to by horse and buggy. We have lost that ability and need to schedule reflection time like everything else. If it’s not on the calendar, it easily gets forgotten.
So to end the year STRONG, REFLECT. You’ll be glad you did.
Happy New Year Everyone!
Lori Bestler
http://www.mindscapesunlimited.com
LinkedIn has been a great tool to connect with old colleagues and reconnect with like minded individuals who can support one another. I like to think of this as an “I’ve got your back” sight. It’s not all about what I can do for you, but understanding more of what each of us do. When we know clearly what a business connection has to offer and run into someone needing that, it feels fantastic to offer a quality referral.
Certainly I love to receive motivational speaking, life coaching or hypnosis referrals, yet I have learned that when I give them I get many more back. It’s the divine law of the Creator. Sow and ye shall reap. Pass it on. : )
Gotta love it!
Lori-Positive Change Expert
http://www.mindscapesunlimited.com
This is a wonderful message Lori and I so appreciate your willingness to share. Many of the points you made could be highlighted, but I am going to focus on one area that needs to be emphasized because the lesson is absolutely profound.
“I once read about how the people in the olden days used to have so much more time to reflect when they traveled to by horse and buggy. We have lost that ability and need to schedule reflection time like everything else. If it’s not on the calendar, it easily gets forgotten.”
In our 24/7, fast paced world, we often do not provide ourselves with the opportunity to reflect and acknowledge what has been accomplished over our lives. The result is living a life without recognition which leads to an empty existence. Whether we literally schedule time to reflect or just become more conscious in the NOW, this is a foundational area that must be addressed on a daily basis. I always tell people to “TAKE IN THE MIRACLES” of each day right before you close your eyes at night. Give yourself 60 seconds to assess the progress you have made and then get excited about the opportunities that are still on the horizon.
Thank you again for all that you do and for sharing a message that NEEDS to be read by the masses!
learn to live each day as if it were your last. yes definitely agree with this article! we never know about tomorrow. perhaps we will suddenly get promoted in a job, maybe we will die, even we may find a love tomorrow. why wait to set goals, we never know what is round the corner.