Many of us are counting down 2015 with great expectation for 2016. Just like every year many of us make resolutions and declarations for the year to come but do we often reflect on those things that we will leave behind? In many instances in corporate America I've been a part of an exercise where we create list for things that we will start, stop and continue.
Just like anything in life there are things that we need to start doing be it saving money, clearing credit, caring for oneself through healthy lifestyle changes or pursuing a goal or dream. There are things that we may need to continue like goal setting, vacationing, giving back to others in our community or being spiritually connected but do we ever evaluate what we need to stop?
I think that sometimes we put thing on pause but do we really stop and what's causing us to only place these things on pause? Is it fear of the unknow? Is it not being able to move from your comfort zone although the behavior is ill fitting for a productive life? Whatever it is I think that it's time to move pass pause and hit the stop button.
Here are 3 things that I plan to leave behind and place on my stop list:
- Self doubt which is defined as lack of confidence in oneself and one's abilities. Are you that person that no matter how great others say that you are you somehow don't believe in your own abilities? Well the proof is in the pudding, begin to reflect on the things that you have done and done well and use that to help build up yourself and realize your own self worth. No need to have self doubt hold you back so let's leave that behind.
- Worry is referred to the thoughts, images and emotions of a negative nature in which mental attempts are made in anticipation to avoid potential threats. Question: Now what has worrying ever solved? Answer: Absolutely NOTHING! I know that it's easy to have thoughts of worry and anxiety when stepping out on something new or there is uncertainty regarding a situation and I'm sure that worrying or having concerns are normal but when we allow worry to overtake our livelihood then it's hard to move forward in life with things that are meant to prosper us. It's okay to have apprehension and it's okay to attempt to dot every i and cross every t but worry often stops us in our tracks and prevents us from moving towards greatness.
- Naysayers are those who habitually express negative or pessimistic views. Now who needs that in their life. Often times we need to remove those folk from our lives and find a circle of friends and acquaintances with like minds and goals. It's often hard to leave those folk behind as some naysayers may be childhood friends, family members or even our spouse. This doesn't mean that you completely cut these folk off but it may just mean that you can't share all of your hopes and dreams with these people as this may cause you to get sidetracked with self doubt and worry.
I know, I know a lot of this is easier said than done and like I've heard many times across the pulpit "I'm preaching to myself" but I believe if we start with these things we are positioning ourselves to catipult towards greatness.
2016 is on it's way and I'm looking forward to a great year and my primary goal for 2016 is creating a plan and being consistent. Who's with me? Don't forget to follow me as iPlan, iGrow and iShare what iKnow because I know a little about a lot!
