Let’s start with an easy question…where were you at the start of 2016? Because that’s how we keep score in life, right?
You haven’t been working your fingers to the bone, only to be experiencing the same old same old in your money affairs, your love affairs, or in your life affairs as you did at the beginning of the year. I know you were hoping you’d get your life together by year end.
Except…sometimes it looks as though nothing has changed.
What if your entire understanding of progress in life is wrong?
What if all the time you’ve spent trying your best to make things work out the way you want was an incredible waste of time and you never really had the slightest chance of turning things around and really getting your life together?
That would be pretty sad and yet truth be told that’s what happens to not just you, but to millions of others around the globe.
There’s lots of reasons why this happens and some soon day I’ll write a book explaining more, but the biggest reason, by far, is our lack of understanding of how life works.
1. No more focusing on what didn’t turn out the way you wanted it to
This is Life 101 dear ones.
What you want to do is to sit down and look at everything you accomplished this year, every way in which you grew, and every way in which you progressed in some way. Have you grown and moved forward, or have you contracted and moved back?
You’ll be amazed at what you see and how much ‘real progress’ you made. The only kind that counts. How much YOU expanded yourself and hence your life! This is truly getting your life together.
The clock isn’t simply time ticking time away, it’s ticking your life away.
If you must review last year’s goals..do it.
Just not from the perspective of what didn’t work, but so you can mentally throw out any desires that just don’t fit you today, or reframe those that do.
That’s how you can get your life together in 2017.
2. Don’t set outer action goals
The quality of your life will only truly change when you change within yourself. A spectacular life begins within. Otherwise, you could be in the most beautiful place in the world and still feel miserable.
You have to bring many things together to create what you want in this world. You have to take lots of different actions.
It’s no different in your inner world. To create what you want within yourself, you have to choose inner actions.
Everything we desire, every goal that we set is because we ultimately want to be happy, be joyful.
[Tweet “Let all your actions be rooted in your joyfulness.”]
So if joy is only a result of something that you did, then it will soon fade away.
But if you choose the inner action of feeling joyful it will lead you to taking an outer action that creates more joy.
3. The best intentions sometimes lead to the worst results
But this doesn’t have to be true for you.
One of my friends experienced someone running into her car in a parking lot. She was furious and scared. Her car was a rental and she worried how it would work out for her with the rental agency. I suggested she wait until she was in a better frame of mind before calling.
She couldn’t wait and the person she spoke to was really unhelpful, which made her feel worse.
“Go and read a book,” was my suggestion. “Or find something uplifting to immerse yourself in. Get out in nature, into the sunshine. Anything that changes your feelings. Then call again.”
She took the dog for a walk, took her mind away from the problem and put it on the sunshine all around her.
Her next phone call ended with the result she wanted. Which basically is what we always want. To feel good!
Getting your life together in ways you haven’t managed till now means you start every action from a ‘feeling good’ place when looking for the best outer result.
You won’t get your life together by intentions alone…the best intentions can lead to the worst results. As we often see in our world.
No, to get your life together it must be by a change in your consciousness. If you establish a joyful inner nature you won’t have to worry about anything else.
4. Prepare yourself for something fantastic
Remember this, if something fantastic is to happen in your world, something fantastic must first happen within you. Then no one can stop you getting your life together this year in the most fantastic way!
Others may set up road bumps…don’t worry. Use them as an opportunity to slow down and enjoy the view before you speed up again.
When worry or fear is happening within you and you try to create something in your life, a magnified version of this worry and fear will manifest on the outside.
If you want to create something that brings you joy, first make sure that something joyful is happening within you.
There’s no getting around it, in the end, [Tweet “who you are is what will manifest in your world”].
5. My personal desires for getting my life together
I’ve never really been a fan of goals…I like the idea of fulfilled desires. And this year my fulfilled desires are on inner- growth, wellbeing, ever expanding joy, and living consciously with the natural inclination of life.
Every day I will check whether I’m a little better as a human being today than I was yesterday. Knowing my greatest success in life will spring from this.
I see our world shifting towards greater love and compassion in this coming year, with more people becoming aware and enlightened. I see others becoming supercharged in the happy fulfillment of their dreams. And so many of you stepping into the fullest power that is the true you.
The question to ask ourselves, the thing to keep score of, is, are we a little more joyful as human beings, are we a little more loving, a little more compassionate? Together, let’s decide that these are our major desires in life and we will radiate this everywhere we go.
Together we can change our world.
So today even if you feel too hurt or sad or scared to even have a dream…know this…you’re not. You are powerful beyond belief.
You woke up this morning, somewhere the sun was shining…and you have before you a brand new day, a brand new year.
Now dare to assume you are who you want to be. Dare to assume you have what you want to have. Dare to assume that all things are possible for you…because they are.
And on that note…I wish you the most awesome New Year you can imagine.
Encourage one another.
Love Elle
xox
12 Comments
Happy NewYear, Elle !
I absolutely love your statement ” our world shifting towards greater Love and compassion in this new year” ! I vote a big joyful – Y E S !
And yet another copy and paste gem, ” who you are is what you will manifest in the world”. That Elle is a mighty tool to have available as we build a better life. It’s instant invaluable feed back all the time !
2017 is going to be the best year ever ! (so far)
Write on, Elle !
Happy New Year to you Joseph…I always appreciate your take on my articles and I’m definitely on that same bandwagon as you…2017 will be the best year ever (so far). 🙂
Love the inspiration, Elle! Your point that our joy and happiness in the world, does start from within is right on. Whatever comes my way, I like the idea that I can control my reaction and wait for the right time to take action.
Onward to a great 2017! I wish you all the best this year and beyond. Thanks for all that you do to encourage your readers.
Hi Cathy…isn’t it great to realize that the one thing we do have control over in life is us, and our responses and allow that to guide us to the ‘right’ action. 🙂
Elle,
Love this positive, inspiring message and solid advice, especially the “No more focusing on what didn’t turn out the way you wanted it to.” So true. We create our reality with our focus. And we create our future by what we do with what is before us. It may not have turned out the way we planned, but it can still be good!
I’m not a big fan of goals either. I think they can be limiting. I prefer to hold long term ideals loosely and stay open to whatever unfolds. Usually, it’s even better than what I could have planned. 🙂
Have an awesome 2017!
Hi Debbie…thanks for your kind words. I love your idea of loose ideals whilst being open to however they unfold…such an organic and beautiful way to go through life. 🙂
Oh Elle, what an amazingly uplifting, inspiring and spin-my-thinking-around post! Thank you so much – exactly what I needed today. And yet again I have to add one of your wonderful lines to the front of my journal ‘Others may set up road bumps…don’t worry. Use them as an opportunity to slow down and enjoy the view before you speed up again.’ Mark and I are going to make that fantastic change inside – 2017 looks super bright.
Please keep on doing all you do, exactly as you do it, Elle. xxx
Hi Laura…I’m so glad you enjoyed the post and thank you so much for your kind words. Your appreciation and encouragement makes my day! 🙂
What a profound shift in how to look at your year! I love it. I’m all for more happiness and joy. Thanks for the sweet nudge, Elle.
Thank you Sandra…what a wonderful world it could be if we choose to live in joy every day. 🙂
Elle this is such inspiring advice. Yay to Happiness and joy in 2017!
xoxo, Z~
Thanks Zeenat…I so appreciate your kind words. 🙂