Already Broken Your New Year's Resolution? Good! Here's Why.

Over the past few years, I’ve been gung ho on new year resolutions, and every year I pull out my list from the year before only to feel disappointed for not living up to my own lofty expectations. I realize this constant pressure we put on ourselves, the hope followed by the crash of emotional guilt and shame, is not helping us live a life we are proud of.

Want 2018 to be the best year ever? Start prepping now with your 2018 horoscope!

This year, my list is not a list at all but an intention. I am choosing to step more fully into who I really am. That’s it. No long lists, no new gym memberships or crazy diets. Just more authenticity.

Because when we are honest and authentic with ourselves, we naturally make smarter choices and take better care of ourselves. And when we help to heal ourselves we uplift all those around us, and help contribute to the healing of the world.

It all stems from you being true to yourself. When you nurture the inside, the outside will flourish.

If we choose to accept the invitation to be honest with ourselves and step into our true selves, the real us that is ready to shine and 2018 marks a powerful year for us all

This looks like immersing yourself in life and letting go of expectations. Being more present in your journey and releasing the need to get there, because you know that everything is in the right order.

Let’s stop trying to change ourselves and instead let the natural transformation take place by aligning with our true self.

Connecting to your true self, the love, the light within you, your source, your inner being is the best way to live a purposeful life. Aim for that feel-good feeling that comes with aligning yourself to purpose and your life will be easier.

What if we change it up? Instead of focusing on resolutions, why not just focus on living a more purposeful and passion-filled life? Instead of making goals that you’ll feel guilty for not achieving, simply intend to be your best self. Everything else will take care of itself.

If you’re ready to make the most of 2018, I created a blueprint to help you start feeling better a.s.a.p.

Here are five things to help you live more authentically:

Strip Down 
In my book The Self-Love Experiment, I share how clearing out clutter will make room for what you want. When you clear our clutter, it is liberating. Look around at all your stuff and ask what can go. The author of The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up, Marie Kondo, lists categories in this order: “Clothes first, then books, papers, miscellany, and lastly, mementos.”

Detach from Digital 
Take some time to detach from your devices and focus on what you want to create in the new year. Self-reflection is an instrumental way to make the most our of each day. You can start by asking yourself these 11 questions.  Plus, taking a few days off from posting can help you return to you. You’ll be able to focus more on living your life and being present.

Set Boundaries 
Most of us say yes to things we really want to say no to. We feel overwhelmed and end up sacrificing our own time, energy, and money. When you set boundaries for yourself, you’ll have more time to do the things you really want to do. You will find you have more energy and you will feel better because you are putting doing what you enjoy. This will fuel your life and help connect you to your best self. So practice saying “No” and watch your life transform.

Stop Trying
So many of us fill our calendars with little to no down time. We’ve trained ourselves to do more in order to feel needed, loved and appreciated.  We fill our time with the endless to-dos, but there is a transcendent magic of releasing the pressure to do more by simply being. Learning the art of relaxed achievement is the most beautiful gift you can give yourself, because you realize you no longer have to work so hard to make things happen, you can simply be more present in your life and watch things come to you with more grace and ease. We don’t have to work so hard to get what we want. We simply have to align ourselves to what we want and trust that everything is in the right order.

Repeat Mantras
Mantras or affirmations are positive messages you repeat to help retrain your brain to focus on the good. Saying them daily can radically changed your perspective. By repeating positive affirmations, we can retrain our brain to overcome fear and see the truth, which is love. Mantras are so powerful and they helped heal me from depression and anxiety.Over the past few years, I’ve been gung ho on new year resolutions, and every year I pull out my list from the year before only to feel disappointed for not living up to my own lofty expectations. I realize this constant pressure we put on ourselves, the hope followed by the crash of emotional guilt and shame, is not helping us live a life we are proud of.

Shannon Kaiser, a wellness writer, life coach, and speaker is the author of The Self Love Experiment.

Want 2018 to be the best year ever? Start prepping now with your 2018 horoscope!

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