Happy Christmas!

Happy Christmas!

I hope that despite restrictions and all the other difficulties of this year you are enjoying a Christmas that is meaningful for you and your loved ones.

As I write this we’re still a couple of weeks away from Christmas day and my thoughts have turned to my word for the year for 2021.

Those of you who read my blog regularly will know that instead of setting new year resolutions I choose an intention for the year. I have nothing against new year resolutions. In fact, I’m pretty good at keeping them when I do set them. No, it’s because I’d rather set an intention for the whole year. A word to guide, remind and inspire me. The first year I did this I chose embrace. I wanted to embrace what life had to offer, new opportunities, new experiences, the people I love.

The following year my word was discernment. I think I sensed, even if I hadn’t articulated it yet, that things needed to change. It was a year of examining my life, making big decisions and making the necessary changes. Out of that came my decision to do my coaching diploma and become a coach. It was a powerful word.

The third year I chose health because through my coaching training I’d realised that my number one value was my mental and physical health and yet I was prioritising work, studying and other people ahead of that. Everything felt out of kilter as a result. Twelve months of reminding myself daily of the importance of health, making my decisions grounded in the value I place on it and I was healthier, happier, more relaxed, productive and creative. Everyone benefitted, not just me.

In 2019 my word was believe. Having made the decision to do a formal coaching qualification in 2017 this was the year I needed to believe in myself as I launched my coaching practice. The word kept me focused and hopeful. It kept me going when I needed to leave my comfort zone and push way out into my stretch zone. It meant I stuck to the plan. It meant I believed in myself, other people and God. It was a great word for a fabulous year!

My word for this year was adventure. Little did I realise the wild ride that 2020 was going to supply. In April a month into lockdown and my grandfather passed away and adventure began to feel like the least appropriate word. I was home alone thanks to lockdown and grieving. I was reading a book called “Finding God in the Mess” which I have to say was hugely helpful in the midst of the mess of a global pandemic and the very last line of the book was “It will be a great adventure”. And in that moment it was like a light bulb going off. I had a choice. Even in the midst of loss and grief and not knowing what the coming months would bring I had a choice and I made the choice to stick with that word adventure and view all the changes and different ways of being and working that 2020 has necessitated as an adventure. I revisited my list of adventures that I’d written in January and worked out which of them were still possible. Lots of them were “adventures” in expanding and growing my business – I wanted to see them as adventures rather than things that may be hard. That word is the reason that my podcast was launched last week. It was on my list of 2020 adventures and I got it done with two weeks to spare!

How do I manage to remember the word and keep it at the forefront of my mind? I create as many visual reminders as I can. This year I bought myself a bracelet that says adventure and I have a lovely print that I can see out of the corner of my eye as I type this. The year my word was believe I left out a Christmas decoration that wasn’t too Christmassy with the word believe on it in front of my television. I bought two cushion covers for the living room that say, “She believed she could so she did”.

The last two years I’ve also asked mum to create an insert for the front of my credit card holder with the word so every time I’ve got my credit card out to pay for something I’ve seen my word for the year.

I haven’t made any final decision about next year’s word yet but I’ve begun to think of options. I usually use those days between Christmas and New Year to give it some thought. I find that those days have an almost otherworldly quality to them for those of us on holiday from work, never quite sure what day it really is! I know that when I’ve relaxed and slowed down I have some of my best moments of clarity.

I’ve brainstormed words that speak to my values and what I want from the next year. The words I’ve come up with so far include freedom, joy, growth, balance, creativity, service, confidence, courage, transformation, epic and trust to name but a few. I know that over the next couple of weeks I’ll both add to and remove words from the list so that come those days between Christmas and New Year I’ll have a shortlist.

How about you? Do you have a word for the year? Do you set New Year resolutions? Or both?

One thing I know for certain about next year is that I have set myself the mission to help a minimum of 1,000 women to unlock their confidence. 2020 has been a tough year for everyone and so I believe that it’s more important than ever that we have those strong foundation stones of confidence that will allow us not just to survive whatever 2021 has in store for us, but to thrive.

To get the year off to a strong start I’m running a free five day facebook challenge to help you to grow your confidence. This challenge is for you if

🌟 There are things you dream of doing if only you felt more confident
🌟 You want to boost your self-belief
🌟 You’re ready to feel more in control of your own life
🌟 You want to feel supported by other women
And it’s for you even if you’re super busy, feeling overwhelmed, stressed or totally uninspired by life right now!

The link to sign up is here. Please feel free to share it with friends too. Recently one of the women in my free private facebook group, Pathways to Possibilities described taking part in my free challenge in October as life changing! The challenge runs from Monday 11th to Friday 15th January. Click here now to secure your spot and be part of the confidence revolution!

With warmest wishes for a very happy Christmas!