It was just the most wonderful time of the year – aimirght? For some people, yes…Christmas holidays are the time when we get to remember fondly, hug tightly, give freely. For some it’s the solstice celebration, or it’s the sad reminder of chasing a feeling, or maybe even a lonely buzz in the mind and heart that just has to be survived. Whatever the holiday season is like for you – please know, you’re not alone.  And we made it through another one. 

As we move to close out the year, we do a lot of this self-inventory thing, where we decide what we f#ck#d up last year, and what we’ll be better at THIS year.

Good lort. Pump the breaks.

First off, did you survive the past year? With all the ups and downs and happy and sad? That right there is a huge accomplishment and cause for celebration.

With a new year, and a new decade upon us, are we thinking about how we’ll be better, do better, feel better? Sure. And to some degree, I applaud this focus.

On the other hand, I hate resolutions, not because they almost always fail, but because it’s a list of reminders of where we went wrong. What about all we did RIGHT?

You know, when something sucks,  we cry and mourn and feel depressed for days, weeks, months…but when good things happen we celebrate for a few hours, a day, maybe a week if we’re lucky.  We spend so much time focused on the crappy stuff, and such little time celebrating our awesomeness. This seems to get amplified whenever we are rolling into a new year. So, what would happen if you faced the new year with a slightly different focus?

This year I’m focusing on my core values. I’m going to celebrate, focus, practice and master one core value a month – that’s a whopping 12 life themes I’m going to master in 2020. And I’m going to celebrate the very living heck out of every month, every week, every day.

Accomplishments will be measured by the feeling. The effort. The intent.

I will not stand in judgment of myself or play the comparison game. I will no longer refer to Facebook memories as a measuring stick. I will no longer look at “where I thought I’d be” versus “where I am.” Nope, not this time, New Year…I will not fall victim to stinkin’ thinkin’ or self-sabotage.

So, I do not resolve to do anything, be anything, have anything. I am focusing on self-mastery through the daily, weekly, and monthly practice of my core values.  Through self-reflection, meditative conversations, and just plain dreamy thoughts, I’ve narrowed down my 12 core values for 2020 to the following:

Integrity | Discovery |  Value

Communication | Experiencing | Creativity

Laughter | Joy | Evolution

Expression | Connection | Collaboration

Where this journey will take me, I have no idea. What exactly this will look like, I really don’t know. But I can tell you that self-mastery and exploration feels a hell of a lot better to me than making a list of habits that I hope to develop, need to give up, or even a list of things about me that suck.

Living my core values is where my focus is headed.  I will not tolerate low vibin’ people who want my energy, my time, my magic for their own selfish intents. See, I’m gonna be too busy doing me to worry about how you is doing you.  But…if you want an accountability buddy, or someone to share your wins, a little nudge when you feel a challenge, I’m your gal. I’ll be over here rockin’ it, and happy to send some shine your way if you need it.

Happy 2020 and living your core values, Rockstar!