Time sure flies!... not our Islamic New year, but the Gregorian calendar still signifies new beginnings.
What an amazing year 2014 has been. Personally it was a year of self discovery and real joy, what would you sum your year up to have been about? whatever it was, there might have been a few regrets, setbacks, financial woes, etc....so the need for "resolutions" becomes more dire towards the end of the year as we sum things up and reflect, with the new year bringing hope of new beginnings to start fresh and achieve our goals.
One of my many resolutions is to swop 3 items (instead of my usual 1 item) from my wardrobe for every new purchase, and then donate them...my goal being to give back and cut down on shopping(wouldn't hubby love that?!:)...BUT my new wardrobe staple is something I want to keep till "I am" vintage. Check out my previous post to find out what that Wardrobe staple is.
Honestly, I don't believe in New Year's resolutions, I think it's self sabotage. What you wish to achieve or gain, or when you decide to work towards it, should not be determined by the earth having made a complete rotation around the sun.
You can on any day at any time decide who you want to be, what you want, or alter your choices, make changes or pursue your goals, and do so, Ardently! Nothing ever really starts, or works out exactly the way we would like it to, and waiting for conditions to change so we can start it, is just another excuse.
If you really want something, go for it! it's always our imagined obstacles that seem to be greater than the actual ones....we look at others and don't believe we could possibly do it ourselves....
Resolution 1: Set Goals - First Believe your goals are Possible! (if you can imagine losing it all, why not imagine having it all)
Amazing things come from simply asking Allah(SWT) and being insistent and consistent in your supplication (Allahu-Akbar- He(SWT) is the Ever Existing, The Eternal and makes the impossible possible). So achieving your Goals requires 2 essential ingredients: Asking Allah(SWT) and making an effort!
Resolution 2: Manage Your Time - The Key is not to prioritise what is on your schedule but to schedule your priorities!
Prioritise what needs to be done in order of importance and urgency (timing eg. must be done by noon). Schedule these into your day, week or months in your planner or diary. Break up big tasks into smaller manageable tasks, even if it means taking baby steps, atleast you are moving in the direction of where you want to be.
Determine what takes up your time, even if it be the smallest irregular/ day-to-day things and write those down. Now decide if they are important or just things you like to do (eg. logging onto facebook/ instagram every 15mins even if just to browse), dedicate time to it if you can't stop or enjoy it, and stick to a specific time in the day (eg, log onto social media at 3pm for 15mins max each day), your friends will understand!
Resolution 3: Banish 3 Idiots -Procrastination, Worry and Laziness...eliminate them!
These are under "your" control and a huge waste of time. All 3 are more emotionally taxing, require more effort to do and are bad for your health than actually dealing with what needs to be done. These are also the 3 items that keep you happy in your comfort zone.
I can't tell you the numerous times in the past I've put off completing a dress pattern, only to do it and find out it was difficult, but not impossible, as I had imagined, and being left with regret over time lost. There were times too when I would think of working out and think I don't feel like doing it, not today, then I do it anyway and that very day I break my personal record!
It will take practice to overcome procrastination, but you will soon find you are alot happier not putting things off all the time. Worrying is like a rocking chair, gives you something to do, but gets you nowhwere! Be a Warrior not a Worrier, place your trust in Allah(SWT) and Move on! Your thoughts will be clearer and you will feel less stressed. The best way to combat laziness is Nike's tagline: Just Do it!.
You need to determine the underlying reasons why you encourage these 3 idiots and deal with it, it will be alot easier than letting the 3 idiots mess up your life.
Lazy??
Are you Homer? Hec No!
Worry??
Resolution 4: Show Appreciation: The more you give the more you get. Prioritise Thanking and thinking of Allah(SWT) and His Rasool (SAW) pbuh, over people and valuing people over things.
The lines can easily blur, from spending too much time in the kitchen or at work, and not enough on ibaadat. With no time for family relationships, visiting the ill and family events, to scolding our kids for playing with our phones and keys, or getting irritable with our elders for stupid reasons. We are all human and we will lose sight of what's more important from time to time, but we should never become completely blind and let these relationships decay to such an extent, revival is not even possible.
We should always strive to appreciate all that Allah(SWT) has given us and show that appreciation through ibaadat, and the five pillars of Islam. An easy habit to adopt is reading durood or making zikr whilst you do mundane chores like gardening, ironing, washing dishes, etc. I promise you will start doing it automatically and will not want to complete chores without doing it.
Listen to your kids, appreciate the sound of their voices, make time for play and imagination, fill their heads with beautiful hadith, and make ibaadat and practice good manners in front of them, make things with them, and include them, glance at their faces, smile often and remind them of how incredible they are, they love these little things...time will pass by quickly and you will regret not having done so more often.
Kindness to elders, is something very speedily losing value in society today, if you haven't already noticed. Elders too have become frustrated at not being respected, appreciated and acknowledged. Ever observed how people walk by the elderly like they don't exist. "Eventually we will all sit down to a banquet of consequences".We will never regret showing kindness, but harshness....complete opposite, it can eventually consume us. If children are the key to the future, the best classroom in the world are at the feet of the elderly.
Resolution 5: Emerge New and Shiny- Try New Things!...Banish Fears and Assumptions those are the 4th and 5th Idiots!
New and shiny like the conversion of R5 notes to R5 coins and not like KZN's new road names (awful!). Life becomes monotonous and depressing, if we don't learn new things, explore new places or make something (not to mention it accelerates . We have all been given the same no. of hours in a day, what really makes us different are our choices. We should be striving to create a life from which we donot need a holiday. Holidays are merely band aids to a bullet wound, they serve to make us feel better that we have done something, but donot solve the real issue.
Distinguish between fear and danger, danger is real and often not under your control and fear is a choice.
Study further to go further in your career, knowledge is not limited to age. I studied Fashion Designing and Makeup Artistry after I was married with a baby and had already completed my Bcom in Accounts before that...so you can definitely further your studies too! If you cannot study, learn from others, absorb and "use" knowledge that surrounds you....your world will be bigger and richer for it!
Try a new activity with your spouse or one that he has been suggesting and you keep declining, you might be surprised by the results. I went for a kickboxing session with my hubby, I wanted to pass out, but it was so exciting and wanted to do it again!
Walk into shops you have never bothered visiting, just for fun, you will never know what you might find.
Apologise to someone you have wronged, they maybe far more forgiving than you assume, if not you still emerge the better person...and best of all, you will move on!
I remember trying bungee jumping for the first time, I had mixed emotions, but mostly I was excited. It passed through my mind when I was standing on that ledge ready to jump, that I had done so much on my own and this is another leap I'm making on my own, it was exhilarating! I realised how much of my own strength I had underestimated. New experiences change you, they are very much necessary for a fulfilling life.
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| Me...Bungee jumping off the Soweto Towers, I never dreamt I would actually get to do that! up next Sky diving....lol!!! |
Go get em Tiger! this is Your Year! How Far You want to go...is upto You! Start Strong and Finish Strong!
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