The gifts are open, scattered wrappings of Christmas are in the trash and it’s time for what naturally comes next: thinking back and planning forward! This may not necessarily be your go-to thought, but many take this less busy week to reflect, renew and refresh. I’ve been trying to do that in stolen moments lately. While I thought I’d have so much time this month, in reality, we all have the same amount of time each day. The question is: how are we spending it?
The final week of the year is the perfect time to look back on past goals to assess where we are at and where we want to go. Maybe you didn’t achieve everything you set out to. I didn’t. But there were also accomplishments I believed were farther out in my future. One of the best lessons I’ve learned is to always be flexible.
This doesn’t come naturally to my plan ahead, be under control style. But I’m learning to plan with enough flexibility to go with the flow if needed. This is out of my comfort zone, I’ll admit. But flexibly adapting has also allowed me to tackle exciting, albeit slightly uncomfortable challenges benefitting me and hopefully many of you!
Looking back and assessing both positive and negative has its advantages. We see patterns emerge or goals and opportunities missed. It’s not always easy to self-critique, so other’s opinions can sometimes be helpful. But at the end of each day, it’s up to each of us to live our own lives. Every choice has consequences.
Take time to reflect, renew and refresh this week. See where you’ve been and imagine where you’d like to go. Comment and share a new hope or dream here if you’re so inclined. I’d love to encourage you! Don’t forget to continue to make memory wellness a priority in 2017. I’ll be here offering suggestions and even a few new things along the way. Let’s flexibly plan to spend our days the way we’d like to remember them.
Here’s to a memorable New Year!