Last December I encouraged my clients and readers to take a whole day over the holidays to re-charge and re-set their systems.
This year, I encourage you to do the same and then one.
This time around, let’s deepen and focus the practice by casting forward in a much stronger way into 2016. Let it come from your deepest intentions, ground and strength.
As a business owner or CEO, you are often reacting to outside stimulation, vendor problems, the market, competitors, funder demands, and employee preferences. The mind and body become exhausted and depleted from this constant outward focus.
If we stay in this pattern of reactivity, it is easy to lose control of our lives and businesses – or never really gain control of them.
Ground yourself in the fact that the only thing it is possible to control or change is your mind. And this takes time and intention.
Let that really sink in.
As a business owner or CEO, your life and your business reflect your state of mind.
This is the good and the bad news.
Bad because it can be embarrassing and hard to face the haphazard patterns in our minds that account for the way we do business. Good, even great, because we can do something about it. We can learn to work with our minds to diminish the chaos and create a more stable and flourishing future.
Here is your Year End Guide to Creating a Your Best New Year
- Schedule the day. It will be WELL worth it. This small investment of time can change your entire year. Isn’t that worth it? If you can’t set aside an entire day, at least schedule four hours. Let people in your life know you want to take this space and time. Ask for their support.
- Plan your day ahead of time. Below is a suggested schedule. Be creative with this!
- Gather what you need ahead of time so you are not looking for things on the re-charge day. Have everything laid out including your schedule the night before. Clean the room before you start.
- Get rid of distractions. Turn your cell phone OFF. Sign OUT of your email accounts. Fully give yourself this gift.
- Follow your plan.
A Structure for Your Day:
7:00 am – 8:00 am: Waking the body and mind.
Find a quiet space with room to move. Light a candle. Do some gentle stretching or yoga. I highly recommended you check out these videos for simple instructions on a few Tibetan Kum Nye Yoga practices to begin your day:
Opening the Heart
Loosening Up the Self Image
Opening Mind and Body
Afterwards, sit quietly. Connect to your breath and feel the sensations created in the body.
8:00 – 9:00 am: Make and eat a breakfast you really enjoy.
9:00 am – 12:00 pm: Close out and celebrate 2015.
Use an easel and pad if available or get a large pad from your local office supply store and markers, if this method works well for you. You can also use a notebook. I recommend getting off the computer to stimulate your mind and body in a different way. Once you complete your day and want a great electronic format to put your results in, contact me and I will send you one.
Take time to write out your answers to each question. No judging! Look with compassion for yourself.
- What did you accomplish in 2015 – big and small?
- What did you learn about your life and business?
- What challenged you the most?
- What lessons did you learn?
- What was most crazy making and how can you change that?
- What did you sell the most of? If you are a non-profit organization, who were your biggest donors?
- What was your gross income, your expenses, and your net income?
- Where did you see the most growth?
- What was your most effective marketing/educating activity that encouraged people to be in relationship with you and your business or organization?
Are there unresolved issues for you from 2015? Are there things that happened that still have a strong emotional charge for you? Take stock of these. What steps can you take to help dissolve these and truly be able to move on in a positive way?
- What are you most grateful for?
- What are you ready to let go of?
Once this is all written down on paper, step away. Sit and take some deep breaths. Breathe in all that you appreciate and are grateful for from 2015 and exhale all that you are ready to let go of. Breathe in the endless possibilities that are 2016.
12:00 – 1 pm: Make yourself a lovely lunch. Relax and enjoy it mindfully.
1 pm to 4 pm: Begin to create the 2016 of your dreams.
- What are your business goals?
- What work do you want to do more of? How much more?
- What are your revenue goals? Do you have the team and the systems in place to meet these goals? What needs to change?
- What marketing activities will be required to meet these goals? What and how often?
- What are your goals for your own growth? What is new that you want to learn? How do you want to grow as a leader of your own mind?
4:00 Take a break. You have accomplished a lot!
4:15 – 5 pm Go through all of your notes.
Compile a master list of your goals for 2016.
Begin to put your goals ‘into time’. Which goals do you want to accomplish by each quarter, month and then by week? Here you may start to see gaps. This is an opportunity to spot the gaps before they actually happen.
5:00 to 6:30 Make yourself a wonderful dinner.
7:00 – 9:00 Make time for something special to stimulate your body and mind.
It could be a hot bath with nice scents. It could be a therapeutic massage. Perhaps go to a yoga class. End the evening and day with a short inspiring reading and rest well for the night.
Now that you’ve had this day geared toward a more productive 2016, you’ve got to follow-through to make it a reality. Schedule some time in the next couple of weeks to continue to integrate this work into your calendar. Set up a check-in system for yourself to see how things are coming along. Are you on schedule? Do you need answers you don’t have? This process can make a HUGE difference in how your year goes.
Does this sound overwhelming? It doesn’t have to be.
Would you like some help? I can assist you in digging in to the details of your goal-setting and make them a reality in your day-to-day life. With coaching it’s possible to be accountable and stay on track to success.
I am offering, for the first time, a short individualized engagement to help you set up a successful re-charge/re-cast day and then get it integrated into your activities for 2016. The goal is to give you the structure and support you need for your best year ever.
Plus, it is just an energizing lovely fun fun day together with several really cool bonus ways I will support you.
If you are the CEO or Executive Director of a larger organization this framework can still be incredibly helpful. Implementing it on a team level is a little more complex, but there is a path for that too.
If this interests you, click here and let’s have a conversation on creating an amazing 2016 for you and your business.
Happy, Happy New Year. To all you will become!
