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I’m one of those people that will put something on a list that I’ve already completed, just to be able to cross it off. This trait is identified within Clifton’s StrengthsFinder framework as “Achiever”. I’ll probably delve into my Top 5 sometime else. I love looking at things and putting a plan in place to fix/grow/correct/evolve it.

So while I’m not big on New Year’s resolutions, I love taking time during the calendar transition to reflect and review. I also find that if I share these things, I’m more apt to remember and implement them instead of it just being a mental exercise that is lost in the pages of one of my journals.

It still is surprising to me when I revisit prior years’ notes how much of the stuff I thought about happened or is in progress. It’s really nice. An example of this from a note I found recently from years ago was:

Create space.
Create. Space.
Creative space.

The different takes on those word pairings was the foundation for some fun things I’ve folded into my life like quiet time, breathwork, meditation, and creating (drawing, poetry, and writing). So while the focus ebbs and flows with the swirl that is life, the “Create space” triad has stuck. I like things that stick. Almost nothing is more frustrating than spending time and energy on something, only for it to fall away and be forgotten.

So as I was thinking about 2025 and how I was going to approach it, I had some phrases run through my head including:

Show up.
Get out.
Do it.

I wanted to put some “meat” around those bones and wasn’t quite sure how. A friend of mine who does coaching, coincidentally offered a half day group session called “Blueprint for 2025” to flesh out some goals/directions/intents for 2025, which I joined and which was awesome! :)

There was the most interesting take on the arena of goals and progress. I loved how it was pieced together as it really resonated with me. It started with the foundation around willpower. Willpower is not an infinite resource. It’s finite and having to use it too much to “be strong” has the same result as decision fatigue - you just get depleted and having nothing left to resist or make the decision or “stay strong”. The “trick” is to deal with it internally vs externally. Meaning if I want to be healthy, instead of saying “I want to be healthy” (external) I reframe it to “I am somebody who takes care of my body” (internal). The distinction is subtle but makes a huge difference. Do I want to be more present or am I a person who shows up? Reframing takes effort and awareness and has been helpful.

We had to select five areas or zones for 2025 to delve into. The five zones in 2025 that I focused on were:

The question asked for each one was:

“If I embody ______ in my life, what would that look like?”

and then:

“What are the actions required to get there?”

Health

Looks Like:

Actions Needed:

Connectedness

Looks Like:

Actions Needed:

Simplicity

Looks Like:

Actions Needed:

Being

Looks Like:

Actions Needed:

Create

Looks Like:

Actions Needed:

Deep Dive

Then we took one and and did a Deep Dive. It’s a lot of work and it’s really helpful. I chose Health.

My last notes from the session were the following and seem rather relevant:

Focus on the roots, not the fruits.

Do the work.

(but man, sometimes that work is so tiring)

Posted on February 17, 2025   #writingprompt  





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