Like you, I’ve been bombarded with so many emails about the New Decade! 2020! New Year, New You!
But I have to admit, I love it.
I love a blank slate – not only a new year but a new decade to craft the next chapter in my story. Yes!
Every year as the year comes to an end I reread my journals for the whole year. It’s totally tedious and I realize I’m pretty boring and often a broken record. Take aways – I need to eat less sugar, make and save more money.
I write in a journal every day and have since elementary school. I unearthed my first Annie journal from 1982 in third grade where I chronicled my best friends, pets and where I was going on vacation.
After I combed my 2019 journals for any clues on how to grow and live a better, more efficient, healthier, happier life I move on to phase two – goals for the new year. They always involve a fitness goal, several professional goals and a family goal like be more present with the kids or be a better, less critical wife. These goals give me clear direction. They organize my brain. I will be doing them until I die.
Always a fitness goal!
Journaling is my life raft. There will never be a morning where I jump out of bed and take the kids to school or go to work without first organizing my thoughts and plotting the day. There have been a few mornings I’ve overslept or the alarm was accidentally set for 6:09pm instead of am where I grab my coffee on the mad rush out the door. Those days sucked and I hope to never repeat them.
How I almost always start my day- get up a good hour before the kids on a school/work day. Press the button on the coffee machine, shower or wash my face while it’s brewing. Sit down at the dining table as quietly as possible as not to disturb the sleepers so I can have this precious quiet time. I open my computer to a neutral page, just for its light since it’s usually still dark – not email! I take a sip of coffee and start my writing – my brain dump, my morning pages, whatever you want to call it and it sets the day off to a positive, productive start.
When I hear the stirrings of my children I’m ready to hug them, make them breakfast and take on anything the day shoots at me. I encourage you to start your day with writing and notice how your morning change, how you’re more productive and focused. I’m very excited to embark on this new decade with you!