You’re one month into the new year. Maybe your 2015 holiday season was just as crazy as mine and you’re also just now feeling back-to-normal. The hours may pass slowly but the years tend to fly by. If 2016 hasn’t started off quite like you planned, start it over again. Take some time to reflect and reset and use this year as your chance to "make it happen." You know what "it" is: now decide that you're not settling with the status quo and get moving.
2015 was a good year, but certainly had its share of challenges. I learned how to do things that I never planned on: I spent a lot of time working through health insurance options, discovered the intricacies of being a bridesmaid, figured out how to share difficult news with strangers, and learned how to do a long-distance relationship well. I unexpectedly had to buy a new car, realized that it is possible—and even worthwhile—to be in transit for longer than you'll be at your destination (hello, last-minute road trip for my friend’s engagement celebration), worked to cope with relatives facing Alzheimer's, and acknowledged how overwhelming December can be when you try to "do it all." How encouraging and gratifying it is to look back on all the good with the bad!
Making it through the challenges—big and little—is so empowering. Remember when "it" seemed so impossible that it made you want to cry and run to Netflix rather that come up with a game plan? Bam, it's done. You did it. Smack that one on your resume, my friend.
I spent several weeks in December toying with potential new year's resolutions, and ended up back with an old familiar goal: be intentional. Make time for the things that I want to make time for and prioritize the things that are important, not just urgent. Try not to beat myself up for not doing everything. People often have more regrets about the things they didn't do than the things that they did.
Let 2016 be the year that you finally plan the big trip, pay off your student loans, read one book every month, lose the extra pounds, buy the dream house, decide to be content instead of constantly worried, call your parents more often, or turn down that glamorous-but-sure-to-be-stressful offer. As Nelson Mandela said, "It always seems impossible until it's done."
