Finding refreshment

It’s the midway point. Half-time. Could this be a good time to take stock of our year and to see how we can reactivate our dreams that we may have given up on or put on hold?

Last night at midnight there was a ‘leap second’ as our trusted timekeepers added an extra split second to bring our time into step with the earth’s rotation.The hashtag #leapsecond trended yesterday on twitter as tweeps revealed what they would do with that extra half a heartbeat of time.

Many resolved to take a quiet moment of reflection on the stroke of midnight. Then woke up this morning only to be swept along by the next trending hashtag (seriously): #AddGoatRuinAQuote.

Back to my point: many of us started the year full of zeal and promise, setting out a vision for what we would accomplish, what we would give up, how we would live. And then, after a few days, weeks or months, ‘life’ took over and the vision became a bit blurred, or maybe even obliterated.

So, join me here at the midway point (I need it too) and let’s take a little longer than a ‘leap second’ to reassess where we’ve been, where we’re at and where we’re going. Treat it like the football manager’s half-time dressing room chat before the second half to give feedback, direction and motivation. It’s a game of two goats after all.

Take some time out

Taking stock of your year will mean pulling back from distractions and quieting your mind for a time. If you can’t manage any more than 20 minutes today, that doesn’t matter. Take even that short time out to gain some fresh insight and encouragement and if necessary schedule more time over the coming days to recalibrate your year.

Revisit the vision

Let’s take a look at our vision for the year again. If you don’t have one, don’t wait until next January to get one. It may have been one or more declarations or thoughts to yourself: this year I’m going to lose weight/spend more time with God/start a budget/pay off my credit cards/start that business/stop wasting my goat on twitter or facebook. Or it may have been a written vision with a set of goals covering different aspects of your life.

Celebrate the progress

Rather than kicking ourselves for what we haven’t done or been, take a moment to celebrate what we have achieved. Feed off the momentum of the highlights and don’t live in the lowlights.

One of my goals for this year was to record some of my songs. I’d hoped to have recorded three tracks by now. Instead of bemoaning the two ‘missing’ tracks, I’m enjoying the fact I’ve recorded one and am looking forward to the second one. My initial goal helped me to take action by finding a great vocal coach then a talented producer to record the first song.

Bring the ‘undones’ back on track

Don’t dwell on the lows and the omissions. The good news is that you can take steps today to bring unfulfilled actions or commitments back on track.  Look over what you said you’d do and have not made a start on or completed. Maybe you set an unrealistic or arbitrary goal in some of these areas and you need to trim them back a bit. If you’re like me, there are some things that definitely need attending to that you’ve delayed. Just note them down and re-jig the plan, deciding when you’re going to action them. Take a first step of commitment today by setting at least one of them in motion.

Keep your vision in sight

It’s motivating to keep your vision visible (see earlier post). Some people find it helpful to have a vision board, with their vision, key goals and the words spoken over their lives on a white board, large card or artwork. Write it on your tablet or phone. Just don’t hide it away in a drawer, because it will find an equivalent place in the recesses of your mind.

Connect with God

In all vision and goal setting, I find connecting with God the most important dimension. ‘Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.’ (Psalm 37:4) I don’t know where you are on the spectrum of ‘there’s something out there’ to ‘lover of God’. But to find out what I mean, just ask Him: help me connect with You and to connect with the desires You have put on my heart. Watch what happens. As I progress in life, I realise increasingly that the most satisfying desires are those that revolve less around having ‘things’, but which bring a positive impact and the love of God into the lives of others. The ‘things’ come as by-products: means to bless others and for our own enjoyment.

It’s a New Season

So, to see dreams and goals fulfilled, don’t wait for New Year to come around again. Start living them now: it’s a New Season.

Happy New Season! Out with the Goat, in with the New!