How about this instead of resolutions this year? Let’s pretend we are cleaning out our drawers. Some stuff is part of everyday life, and we can’t imagine life without it. Other stuff just sits there and is of no good use at all. Maybe it’s even annoying. I have a book that bugs me, and it’s going down the library donation shoot next time I walk Rafael Leonardo, my little dog. 

We can’t exactly put people we may have outgrown down the shoot, but we can reframe how we do or don’t engage them in our day to day lives. And then there are people, places, and things that are not particularly active and present in our lives, but we will still keep them with us, in one way or another, because we want to and we can.

Alternative to New Year’s Resolutions

So this is my idea of an alternative to New Year’s Resolutions, simply because most resolutions fail anywayand I happen to know firsthand how useful, even fun, this other approach can be. I should add that, sometimes it is sad too, even profoundly sad, to let go of the old to make way for the new.

Over the last few years, a lot has changed in my life. Not all of it Covid related, although I do think the virus actually concentrated and accelerated the Stop, Start, Continue…People, Places, Things already in play in my life. 

Stop, Start, Continue…People, Places, and Things

Stop, Start, Continue… is an ordinary team building exercise that can have extraordinary results, not only for teams, but for families and personal/professional growth too. 

And it doesn’t have to be a once a year or once a quarter kind of thing. How about renewing and refreshing in an ongoing way. The brain gets all jazzed up by novelty, so every day can be a lighter footed adventure living it this way. What will I stop, start, continue on this day?

We often ask ourselves what we are going to do today, but maybe not as often do we ask what we are going to let go of or tuck away. Hope you will try this way of thinking about yourself, your life, and the people, places, and things in it, and let us know what you find.

Happy New Year and Warmest Wishes for 2021,

Madelaine