December: 12 Ways to Prepare for the New Year
Before the clock strikes midnight on Dec. 31, here are a dozen ideas to help you prep for the amazingness that lies ahead! Your What’s Next Journal is here to help!
1. GET READY TO DATA DUMP: Grab a sheet of paper and write at the top: Me in 2021. Draw a line down the middle of the paper and name the left column: My Wins from 2020. On the right: My wishes, plans, dreams, and audacious goals for 2021. Write it all down, then set this page aside. We’ll come back to this later.
2. GRAB THE SECOND SHEET OF PAPER AND START UNPACKING: Write down every single painful experience, negative thought, regret, and lost love story that’s taking up precious space in your psyche. Jot down anything you want to leave behind. Write and write until you think you’ve got it all out of your head and onto the paper.
3. NOW, TAKE THAT SECOND SHEET AND BURN IT UP: If you have a fireplace, fire pit, or even a big bowl where you can safely light a flame, take that list — and set it on fire! If you have pictures of persons you need to severe or distance from your life or places that are negative to you, burn those too!
4. WATCH ALL THAT NEGATIVE ENERGY GO UP IN SMOKE: Repeat, “I bless you with love. I release you and let you go. You are free. I am free.“
5. CLOSE YOUR EYES: Envision hurling all of your pain, grief, regrets, and sorrow into the universe. The farther it goes, the smaller it becomes. As it floats into the distance, it not only disappears — it evaporates.
6. NOW, GO BACK TO THAT FIRST SHEET FILLED WITH ALL OF YOUR HAPPY THOUGHTS: We are going to take those ideas and create a vision board — one of the most powerful tools in your arsenal. That›s because this poster is a reflection of your inner world, one where you create affirmations that move you away from the negativity and release your thoughts, ideas, hopes, wishes, and vision for What›s Next! You can do this on a giant sheet of poster board, in your journal, online, or on a napkin. Cut out images from your favorite magazines to make a collage; write words on post-it notes with markers and crayons to draw out your dreams. The important thing is that you get it down in a bold format to release what you want and know you want, deep inside.
7. NOTE TO VISION BOARD VETERANS: If you’ve been using this tech- nique for years but haven’t updated your Vision Board recently, it’s time to clean house. Remove what you no longer need or desire. Add new images that represent your goals for the new year. We do that several times a year, actually, because our visions keep coming true, and we contin- ue to have new ones. Try this! We think you’ll like it.
8. BREATHE AND MEDITATE ON WHAT YOU’VE CREATED: Once your work of art is com- plete, sit with it. Look at it con- stantly. In the coming days and weeks, add to it. Take out the stuff that doesn’t fit anymore.
9. WALK AROUND: There’s nothing more clarifying than a brisk walk to clear your mind and open up and re-align the two sides of your brain — using creativity to overcome negativity. As you walk, think of your life as currency, as the current of flowing water. Accept with grace what is yours, and let the rest pass you by. You do not need to own other people’s stuff. You have enough of your own!
10. ACCEPT AND INTERNALIZE THAT YOU ARE A POWERFUL MANIFESTOR: One of our favorite ways to dissipate energy is to smudge our homes and offices using sage. Here are other easy, energy-clearing tips: Place basil new the doorway or cash register will attract more business. It is said that placing it in all four corners of your house can also provide protection and purification.
11. CLEAN OUT YOUR WALLET: Do this with your handbag, coat pockets, closets, and drawers to make room for all the good fortune that is com- ing your way. Plus, you never know what treasures you might find hidden away.
12. AND BEST OF ALL — DON’T FORGET TO SAY THANK YOU FOR ALL THAT YOU GAINED IN WISDOM AND PATIENCE IN THE LAST YEAR! Please pat yourself on the back, for you have accomplished a great deal and survived what was possibly the most trying time in your life.
NOW: IT’S TIME TO CELEBRATE! Set aside time to host your private farewell party for 2020. After all, this is an auspicious occasion and one that is unprecedented in all of our lives. You will be the most important person in attendance. Grab a glass of your favorite beverage and get the party started!
From your What’s Next Journal • By Cynthia de Lorenzi and Hope Katz Gibbs • Design by Cindy Seip