Happy New Year!
Fern Ice, photo by Lee Kellogg
It’s 2023, wow, what a few years it’s been! Time to take a deep breath and pause. I hope you are ready for another fast year, that is hopefully full of good things. Yes the several years have been doozies, but in many respects we all are still here, making art and being loving people. We all have lost people and will continue to have elders and some not so old leave. We are here to do what we can with what we have.
When I reflect on my life, it tends to be chunked out in 20 years sections. Three years into a new decade I seem to gather my stride and get going. It’s rather like it takes me two years to settle into the change that I have initiated and then I have momentum to get the ball rolling.
That is how I see 2023. I have narrowed my goals and ideas, even that has taken a fair amount of time, to ones that I feel I can actually focus on. As a creative we are often over run with great ideas. Focusing can be a huge challenge. So give yourself some grace and space to work on that focus.
Momentum forward it frequently slow and done in small steps. It may seem that you are not going anywhere or getting anything done, then all of a sudden you are. I start my goal setting in the fall, as that feels right for me. Thus, January is a continuation of work already completed.
With the holiday break over, it is time to get to work and focus on the things that scare the heck out of me! Yes, I have several goals that scare me and even worry. Hopefully you have a goal or two that scares you. However, fear cannot rule roost. Do a pre-mortum on the goal. That is, what would happen if a year from now you completely failed at the project/goal/whatever. What is the worst that could happen? How do you feel? How do others around you feel? Use this knowledge to grow and conquer your fears. By exploring the worst that might happen, you free the way for the best to flourish.
I like this exercise combined with another that I have been applying recently: regret. If I were to die today, what would I regret not doing? I have been asking myself this about several areas of my life lately and the answers have been excellent guideposts. Ask yourself: what would you regret not doing if you were to die today? Write those answers down and get to work!