Starting Over

We are into the second week of January of the New Year.

Nonetheless, despite hopeful goals and resolutions, the sobering fact is that one research found that 64% of people give up on their New Year’s resolutions after just one month.

That sounds very much like the story of my new year too.

12 days in, already I feel like I need to start over.

Hmmph…

Flashback

About three months ago, I had posted how the changing of the seasons could help us focus and remain motivated for the year ahead.

Heeding my own advice, I had made some plans.

No grandiose stuff.

Just your usual run-of-the-mill ones - good health, a bit of wealth, and some peace in my life.

Even before I could put the plans to work - life got in the way.

For the last two months, we have been shunting around like a runaway train, up and down the country.

It began with a few funerals, interwoven with a couple of weddings. Throw in a birthday celebration or two, and then the festivities of Christmas and the New Year - and voila - you’re starring in your own personalized dark-humor movie.

There has been little time to process or savor the moments - good and bad alike; they seem like a blur; the photos and videos of the occasions seemingly the only evidence that they actually took place.

The Present

If I was hoping that that movie would be over by the beginning of the new year, I was grossly mistaken.

Right at the beginning, there have been a few health issues, nothing earth-shaking but enough to throw me off the track.

Then just last week, a close friend died.

It felt like a sucker punch.

For those of you who are my subscribers, you would have noticed I’ve struggled to keep to my writing schedule.

It’s been a real chore to get organized, read, reflect, and write, with the drama in real life droning on in the background.

WTH To Do About It

In the last few days, despite all the background and foreground noises, there have been moments of enlightenment - grace, if you will.

I stumbled upon a couple of gems that brought me back down to earth and tethered.

The Art of Monotasking - basically is the art of focusing on just one thing at a time.

It means giving all your attention to a single task without getting distracted by other things. It helps you do your best work and be more efficient.

I realized I’d been worn out by having been in the “always-on” mode and multi-tasking to remain in the groove; I needed to get back to the basics.

Tim Denning stresses the best productive hack in the world is doing work in a “Flow State”.

It struck a chord.

I had learned about the Flow State as a student of Tim’s a couple of years ago.

I noticed that my best work - writing, in this sense, happened when I was in this state. And my flow state was simple - Reading, Reflecting, and Music.

I had been still managing to do the first two amid the dramas in real life.

But inexplicably, I had missed the music.

I write best when there is music playing in the background.

I had grown up in the so-called “golden era” of music, that helps amplify my feelings and thoughts. Somehow, the juices begin to flow.

Even now, as I write, John Denver’s “Poems, Prayers & Promises” is humming on Spotify.

This is what had been missing.

Somewhere in the last couple of months, I had been unable to tune in. My mind, body, and soul had been out of sync. My writing, health, and finances suffered as a consequence.

Final Thoughts 

If your resolutions seem a distant memory just a couple of weeks into the new year, or your plans seem to be grounded on the tarmac for whatever reason, you may want to read Tim’s post as a starting point.

The world’s longest-running study on happiness and health by Harvard Adult Development spanning 100 years and 2 generations of Americans concludes that those who practice “Gratefulness” daily in their lives are happy people.

Gratitude practice supports physical health by lowering the risk of heart disease, diabetes, and certain cancers.

It enhances mental well-being, promoting a stronger immune system, sharper memory, and reduced risk of depression and anxiety.

Gratitude fosters emotional resilience, improving sleep quality, managing chronic pain, and cultivating self-confidence and forgiveness.

Get in touch with Ikigai - a Japanese concept meaning "a reason for being" or "a reason to wake up in the morning."

Ikigai refers to finding joy and purpose in life by aligning your passions, talents, and what the world needs.

In simple terms, it's about discovering what you love, what you're good at, what the world needs, and what you can be rewarded for, all combined into one fulfilling pursuit.

I think the runaway train is coming to a stop now.

It’s time to get off and retrace the steps to my station.

If you’ve been on a similar journey too, maybe you could do likewise.

Thank you for your patience and reading.

I am blessed.

You are too. 😉 

Cheers and see you soon.

Jude

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