Jan 23
Collecting the Ingredients Is Relatively Easy, but Do You Follow a Recipe to a Committed Decision?
We all need a roadmap to get from A to B
Hello friend,
I must ask the question now that Blue Monday* is tucked away behind us.
How are you?
How are you this January season, now that four weeks of the year have already flown past?
Perhaps you are committed and well underway with your New Year intentions and resolutions, or maybe you are elbow deep with your sleeves rolled up busy planning.
If you are anything like me, the chances are you have instances where the motivation is high at the start of the year, and then comes the first obstacle or distraction knocking you off course — and boom, the dish you were preparing is ruined.
New year, time to try something new
Well, this year I am trying something different. I am concentrating on where my attention and focus go.
To help, I have written a retrospective letter to myself dated December 31 2023. Each morning or at least when I remember, I read my letter to remind me how I want to feel and what I plan to achieve this year.
I use this letter to help decide what is important versus urgent and prune unnecessary activities and ideas.
Four weeks in, this new regime appears to be working in keeping my thoughts and intentions on track. I find it a useful way to reconnect with my values and goals for the year.
Of course, the real proof will be in the pudding, when with compassion, I will look back at the results. 😊
I have other ideas for arriving at a recipe to a committed decision, such as
- List the why’s and why not’s — to identify the risks and challenges.
- Prioritise — ask yourself, does this align with my goals and values?
- Observe— pay attention to the emotion attached to the decision.
But I am curious; I want to ask your thoughts and opinions on what do you do to make a committed decision and see it through.
One newsletter, two announcements and a new commitment
First, I have updated the LifeSuccessHappiness About page to explain better what this publication is about — I invite you to check it out and let me know what you think.
In the process, I concluded my desire to open this publication to other wonderful writers such as yourself, this quarter will have to wait.
I need more clarity on how that would work and the direction I want to go. So, for now, while I get to work, I have decided to put those plans on hold.
Second, in the spirit of commitment, I plan to send this newsletter weekly.
Yes weekly! (eyes- roll, but you said you would not clutter our inbox)
I know this goes against my original commitment; rest assured, in many ways, I still plan to honour that, but I have come to an understanding one month between newsletters is quite a long time.
I almost feel that with so much going on in our lives, we need to reintroduce ourselves each time.
So I have decided to aim for a short weekly round-up of tips, news and all things LifeSuccessHappiness rather than a long curated email.
Besides, if there is one thing, I have learned from my fifty-plus revolutions of the sun. It is we all want and need a little more love and happiness, and if you appreciate this sort of thing, cues towards our well-being and personal development.
With that said, at the risk of this becoming an awfully long email, I am going to stop and simply say one more thing.
I wish you all a happy, loving and fun week ahead; see you at the next one.
At any time, if you would like to say hello, give feedback, or raise or share a topic you would like to see me explore, please get in touch. You can contact me directly via the email below.
If you find this newsletter of value and know anyone else who might feel free to forward this on and invite them in.
Jesse
You can contact me by email at: jes@lifesuccesshappiness.com
*Oh yes, in case you were wondering about the Blue Monday reference, you can read more about the origin and how the date was calculated on Wikipedia.
Just for kicks, a little bit of 80's nostalgia — New Order — Blue Monday.
