Someone wise once told me, "Begin with the end in mind."
When cultivating a New Year's resolution this makes some real sense. Where do you want to be one year from right now? What do you want to accomplish in one year? What are you going to do to get there?
But then there's that word. There. What does there mean and why do we focus on it so much? I have to admit, most of the time it's the only thing I focus on. Part of me wants to stop worrying about getting somewhere or doing something great. Could it actually be enough to just live my life?
I believe the best thing we can do for ourselves is focus on our daily lifestyles. If you were to focus solely on making each day productive and fulfilled, you would probably have the best year of your life. Having goals are important. Create them. Write them down somewhere. And then put them away. You know what your goals are, if you stop thinking about them constantly and just focus on the 24 hours in front of you, achieving something will become easier. Begin with the end in mind, but live in the present. Thinking about the future is overwhelming and, in reality, it is why many people lose their New Year's motivation.
As a college student sometimes the only way for me to watch television or movies is through Netflix. Over the past few months I completed How I Met Your Mother. I thought this was the last show that would make a profound impression on my new year. But in one episode the central character said something that I think everyone needs to hear, "You can't cling to the past. Because no matter how tightly you hold on, it's already gone."
In order to start fresh you have to let go of the negative energy you are carrying over. The past can be a blinding force when you are trying to focus on the present. Forget about what came before and focus on what's happening right now. Otherwise you might miss it.
In 2015, it is time to focus on the positive and share the positive. Use Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, to share all of the amazing things that are happening to you. Share the good times, the accomplishments, and the lessons you are learning along the way. You never know who you are inspiring on a daily basis, so act as if you have a fan club.
For my friends who know me, they always hear me say, "This is for the fans."
Which for me means, this is for me. I use social media for myself and once I started realizing that, it took all of the pressure out of it. This new year is for myself. It's for all of the positive things in my life that make me happy and if I find fans along the way, that's only a bonus.