Forward to the New Year

“If you want something new, you have to stop doing something old.” ― Peter F. Drucker

The last day of a calendar year is upon us. You have accomplished a lot in 2014, failed at a few things and wanted to do more. But the year is over and all we can do is move forward into 2015.

So what are you going to do?

Keep moving forward.



Stay inspired my friends!

Happy New Year - 2014

"Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

On this the new day of a new year, I must ask if you took part in the five most bizzare New Year's Eve traditions.

1. Welcoming the new year in a graveyard - Talca, Chile.
    Being in the company of deceased friends and relatives in a candle-lit graveyard.
2. Attempting to understand animal speech. - Romania.
    If you can hear the animals talk, it's a bad omen.
    If you can't, the new year will be a good one.
3. Banging old bread on the walls - Ireland.
    Meant to drive away evil spirits and bring good luck.
4. Throwing items from the window - Johannesburg, South Africa.
    Mostly old microwaves and other unwanted furniture.
5. Cutting a hole in the surface of a frozen lake - Siberia, Russia.
    And then diving to the bottom while carrying a dead tree.

We surely have different customs and traditions to mark the beginning of the new year. But in all, I would like to give you this short Irish blessing. "Go mbeire muid beo ar an am seo arís,” or in English, "May we be alive this time next year!"

Happy 2014 everyone and stay inspired!

Your New Year

“The chief beauty about time is that you cannot waste it in advance. The next year, the next day, the next hour are lying ready for you, as perfect, as unspoiled, as if you had never wasted or misapplied a single moment in all your life. You can turn over a new leaf every hour if you choose.” ― Arnold Bennett

The building blocks for the year 2013 are there in front of you. They are freely there for the taking and building of a great life. Let this be the year that you build a great life, your best life.

Stay inspired my friends!

Shout It Out

"As selfishness and complaint pervert the mind, so love with its joy clears and sharpens the vision." -Helen Keller

It is December 31st, the final day of the year, the final chance to do one great thing for your life this year. And that one last great thing is to let it go. Let go of the hurt and complaints that crept into your life during the year. Today is the day to pour out any pain or disappointment that remains.

Your life is like a bucket, some shiny new while others are getting old and tarnished, but both capable of holding great things. But we carry complaint like a full bucket of water, heavy and cumbersome. We carefully carry it so as not to spill any of it from our lives. The only problem is that while we are concentrating so hard on the complaints, we lose sight of the great things in our lives.

Now that the year has come to an end, pour that complaint out of your life. With an empty bucket to start the year, it DOES NOT mean we fill it with complaint for the coming year. In fact, pour it out, turn the bucket over, stand on top of it and shout out all of your worries, your complaints and your doubts.

Shout out the complaints from the past year.

Shout out the complaints you are sure to have in the new year.

Let it all go now, today and let it seep deep into the ground and out of your life. The bucket will be ready for all those great things to happen in the year to come. This empty bucket will now be ready for you to fill it with goodness, no complaining, no regrets, no looking back.

The end of a year is like a paved road ending. All that stretches out in front of you is a dirt path. It is an uncharted course, with the unknown but something of great promise around the bend.

Take this final day and unload all of your complaints from this year. Unload all complaints for the coming year. Be done with complaint and free up your year for all of the good that can happen.

A new year awaits you filled with many great things. Take your empty bucket into the new year and fill it with all of those great things.

Stay inspired my friends! Have a safe and happy New Year!

Six is not Evil

"Seeing within changes one's outer vision." -Joseph Chilton Pearce

Wow, wasn't that another amazing Christmas Day celebration? It was full of family, friends, presents and eating; lots of eating. Hopefully you received that one special gift and more importantly, you gave someone that one special gift. Yet the day is over and the wrapping paper is bundled in trash bags awaiting the garbage man.

We have also fallen into that time period at the end of a year I call the quiet period. A time when the year is not quite over and not much more can be accomplished. Many people have taken time off and others are left working; seemingly there to only keep the office from burning down. A lull in what was a busy and full year.

It also becomes a time when we truly find moments to reflect on the year gone by. The New Year's resolutions made nearly 365 days ago are either distant memories or marked accomplishments on our goal list. Some may still be working on them, which is a good thing and please continue with them into the newest year arriving.

This time of year is also a good time to reflect on how we have lived our lives over the past year. Have we tried to be a good and decent person? Have we been loving and true to our family and friends? Have we treated everyone including strangers as we would want to be treated?

What I suggest during this quiet period is to take these next six days and make a list of six things you would like to improve upon next year. And do not think the number six to be evil, it is just a number. It is simply the number of days left to prepare yourself for the new coming year.

Take those six days and look for the good in a number such as six. Six days and you will also find there is goodness in other people. Six days to prepare yourself for the coming year. Six days to become a better person to others.

Stay inspired my friends.

Keep The Wheel In Motion

"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." ~Walt Disney

Can you believe it, January is half over and the ringing of the new year bells are fading. The hangover has likely subsided and work or school returned to fill your days.

Resolutions made for the new year on December 31 are still fresh in your mind. You are probably still loyal to the promises made to yourself. Heading each morning or evening to the gym, working off those ten pounds. Maybe you are reading a new book and watching less television. One less beer or bowl of ice cream each day is still doable.

But will you keep moving forward with those resolutions as the year goes? Will you be true to yourself and make those changes promised?

It is easy at this point. Only half a month has transpired, barely a few breaths of the new year. Life hasn't come in quite yet and tried to interfere with your plans. But you know life will try to get in your way, life will try to throw you off course.

What I encourage you to do though is keep the wheel of your life moving. Keep pushing forward with your plans. You have started building momentum and the hills will approach. Momentum will get you over those times and with each success it gets easier.

You have an amazing year ahead of you, full of change, full of new adventure, full of greatness. Keep moving forward, keep the curiosity of your success pulling you to the next level. Pretty soon it will be December 31 and you'll be fondly thinking of a great year gone by. But you will also be jumping with excitement for what's to come next.