With a sudden jolt to my aging muscles, and quicker than you can say “time to rise and shine,” I am awake again before the new sun. And so it begins, another morning, another focus, another chance to live fully with intent. This seems to be my unwritten mantra these days. Oddly, since the beginning of the year, I find myself supercharged with reinvigorated energy and focus. Maybe just a bit too much coffee? Could be…or maybe it is something more.

I completely understand the typical tendencies to begin a brand-new year with a purposeful set of resolutions.  I am no different than anyone else in that regard. One of mine currently, is to drop a few of the unwanted pounds gained during what was The Great Covid-19 Hibernation of 2020. But this year is about so much more. I have convinced myself it is going to be a defining one. The mind is a powerful thing. When it talks, listen. Mine has spoken loudly to me.

Recently I was able to hesitate, consider, and decelerate during the holidays. The time I spent away from the person I had known for the better part of 2020 was much needed. It offered up a chance for a fresh start, to push myself beyond a comfort zone of typical daily routines and haphazard accomplishments.  Instead of absorbing the negative energy all around me due to Corona, I counted my blessings and pivoted in a positive direction.

A new approach, earmarked by so much more than physical bodily improvements. Sure, I may say “goodbye” to some rolls of unwelcome mid-section blubber, but I resoundingly say “hello” to a dedicated mind. A truly renewed sense of purpose burns within me brightly with each and every sunrise. It’s as though my head has been purged from the cloudiness of last year and reprogrammed with some form of discovered clarity. I won’t lie, it’s kind of nice to rouse each dawn like this.

Aside from the pause I took, there hasn’t been some great catalyst or relief of responsibilities in my life to cause this incredibly welcome shift. It simply has awoken within me. I am healthy, content, and uber-productive right now. Stuff is getting done which had been on my lists for a long time. It feels great to see progress being made with everything I touch, in spite of the current virus mess we are still tiptoeing around.

Maybe the real lesson here is to drift away completely for a bit, as I did. To disassociate ourselves from the overflowing headspace that was 2020. A chance for us all to summarily bid adieux to the suddenly disrupted approaches of yesterday. Ending the chaos of daily swimming, inconsistently in the deep waters of unhealthy work-life balance. And welcoming the mixture of a more productive co-mingling between the two.

Just giving “thanks” for the blessings around me, helped to open this new energy source.  Though my speaking business has certainly been upended, I still continue to create content, build my brand, and plan for a brighter future. It is still all about perspective, right? For now, I’m running with it and conducting myself in a confident and motivated manner.

I highly recommend you endeavor to reach the same understanding with your current self. If only for a brief amount of hours. To completely remove the shell of your being, and spiritually reload. Step away, and then gently return back into the new you. There is no magic or a strange faith here. Just time.

Tomorrow, wake a bit earlier than you normally do. Shake the dust webs while flashing the hint of a newly realized smile. Pour a cup of warm, taste-pleasing, aroma-filled liquid, full-up to the rim. Dress in your smartest outfit, or simply settle for sweats; this is still a lockdown after all. Stretch your muscles deeper than usual, and push the blinds a bit higher than yesterday to allow for some additional day glow to make itself visible. Melt down into your favorite comfy cushion, and  make a list of stretch goals for the year.

Upon completion, fling open the front door, inhale a deep breath of crisp, clean, morning air… exhale, and repeat. Now tell yourself  “this is going to be amazing.”

But close that damn door quickly you silly fool. After all, it is  still winter. Some things never change.

Rock the day.

Cheers…A