Christine Kane's "Resolution Revolution"

Our dear singer-songwriter amazing friend Christine Kane has once again published her "Resolution Revolution" article to kick off the new year and has encouraged her fans to use it on their own blogs. I have tremendously benefitted from this approach to focusing on a word that helps me get through the year in a better way than I might have otherwise. Rather than try to put my own spin on her idea - this year I give you Christine Kane herself. Be sure to check out her blog. In the month of December she allowed guest bloggers, including yours truly, to talk about their words of 2008. I have been getting so much inspiration from these posts. Read, enjoy, and be inspired!! And set a great intention for 2009....it's going to be a great year!!!

Resolution Revolution: A Better Way to Start Your Year
by Christine Kane

The regulars at the gym were joking about it early in December.

"Have a good workout now," they said. "Cuz you know what it's gonna be like in about three weeks!"

That's because all the folks who have - yet again - made their New Year's Resolutions will show up. They'll stick around for a while. Then, around Valentine's Day, the regulars get to have their old gym back.

Last week, I overheard a radio talk show. The hosts were discussing the most common New Year's Resolutions and the average success rate. Among the most common were Get Organized, Be More Spiritual, Lose Weight, Quit Smoking, and Spend More time with Family.

I don't know about you, but this kind of To-Do List approach to life transformation does little to inspire me. And it doesn't surprise me that the success rates were low.

Why Resolutions Don't Work

The reason most resolutions don't work is that they address only one level of your life.

The DO level.

It's the DO-HAVE-BE model.

It goes like this:

"I will DO this thing." (i.e., Lose weight) "So I can HAVE this other thing" (Self-Esteem) and I can BE this thing. (Confident.)

The average New Year's Resolution doesn't address the core of the issue:

The "BE" level.

The best order for creating positive change in your life is the BE-DO-HAVE model. This means you start from the BE level. When you begin changing on the BE level of your life, then the DO level and the HAVE level follow more easily.

When you start only on the DO level, then the blocks on the BE level will often become the obstacles you can't overcome.

A Better New Year's Ritual

Several years ago, my friend Kathy and I decided that, instead of making resolutions, we would pick a word that would guide us throughout the year. It would be our touchstone. It would remind us of living our lives at the BE level.

This didn't mean that we didn't take action. It meant that our actions were inspired from the BE level. In fact, I took more action than ever with this new approach!

For two years, I've blogged about this inspiring way to begin the year. The response has been huge. So have the success rates! I regularly hear from people who have created big changes in their lives because they focused on one word.

How to Choose A Word

Look through the list below. Get quiet and listen to your Wise Self. Pick a word.

Then, hold that word in your mind throughout the year, and let your word guide you to take action.

Here's an example:

Let's say you're one of the many people who would normally choose "Get Organized." You're tired of chaos and clutter. So, you think, "I need to get organized. That'll be my Resolution."

But then you read this article. You decide to try this new approach.

You sit with your clutter. You spend a few days pondering words. You realize in an "Ah-Ha!" moment that you hold on to lots of things. You're scared to let go.

So you choose the word "Release" because it inspires you in a bigger way than "Get organized."

So, every time you approach your clutter you remind yourself of that word. "Release," you say softly. You start to let the clutter go.

Eventually, you realize that you're still holding on to lots more than just physical clutter. You realize that you hold onto resentment at old relationships. "Release," you remind yourself.

You realize that holding on is affecting your diet and health. "Release" applies to some of the extra weight you've gained as well. Throughout the year, you can see clearly how much you hold on. "Release" is your touchstone. It grows you throughout the year. It becomes your guiding force, not your harsh standard.

Your clutter became your teacher simply because you shifted your intent towards it. This wouldn't have happened if you'd opted only to "Get Organized."

What word to choose?

Many people know immediately which word resonates with them. For others, a little contemplation is required.

As you read through the list of words, see if one stands out. It's tempting to choose four or five, believing that you can do it all! (Or that you're so messed up, you can't possibly narrow the mess down to one!) I recommend that if you can't choose just one, choose no more than two.

One is ideal. It gives you focus. If you master that one word, you can choose another one in June.

Compassion

Delight

Generosity

Effortlessness

Wealth

Gratitude

Abundance

Creativity

Willingness

Change

Growth

Freedom

Mastery

Kindness

Health

Presence

Acceptance

Courage

Confidence

Self-Love

Action

Forgiveness

Forgive

Release

Trust

Knowing

Patience

Friendship

Fun

Grace

Laughter

Love

Expansion

Exploration

Adventure

Openness

Discipline

Awe

Awareness

Risk

Gentleness

Choice

Spirit

Prayerfulness

Power

Allow

Artfulness

Attention

Beauty

Joy

Focus

Ritual

Heal

Order

Clarity

Pioneer

Peace

Laziness

No

Yes

Deliberateness

Commitment

Savor

Integrity

Listen

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Performer, songwriter, and creativity consultant Christine Kane publishes her 'LiveCreative' weekly ezine with more than 4,000 subscribers. If you want to be the artist of your life and create authentic and lasting success, you can sign up for a FRE*E subscription to LiveCreative at www.christinekane.com.

I couldn't resist this one last post today. The glorious sunsets here always mellow me out, touch me deeply in a spiritual way, and make me feel so grateful for all we have been given. Abundance, the Lord's incredible abundance, showing itself to us again today in a spectacular way. Thanks to Christine Kane I no longer make resolutions for the New Year but instead choose a word to focus on for the year. Last year abundance was my word. It helped me relax through all the renovation financial issues at the end of the project as well as the troubling economic downturn, keeping my attention on what abundance there was instead of what was missing (i.e. cash!) And lo and behold our appraisal came in where we needed it and we will once again even have financial abundance. The sunset this evening locked in the word abundance for me again in 2009. May you all experience similar abundance. Happy New Year!!

Christmas!

Christmas just sort of snuck up on us this year. Between the power outage, the upper respiratory ailment, the two feet of snow, and the trips up and down to New York City for work I barely had time to decorate. We never did get a tree. And with the economy, it was a lean year on the gift front. But we did spend Christmas Eve and part of Christmas Day up in Westford with my sisters and their families. And the day after Christmas we hosted the entree portion of our First Annual Fowler Laker Road progressive dinner. Peggy and Sarah hosted us for yummy appetizers, Loretta and Paul had us all for a divine salad, David made a spectacular Pork Crown Roast with my homemade applesauce and sides everyone contributed and Tovah and Alan outdid themselves hosting us for 14 different desserts. Eric and Alex brought wine to complement all the courses. None of us has felt this full in a long long time. It was deemed a success and we will definitely be making it an annual tradition.

Blizzard December 2008

We've truly arrived! This year, David has joined the ranks of the locals helping neighbors out after blizzards. Here you see him merrily trucking along the road on his John Deere to plow people out. I've never seen him so happy - except maybe when he was helping neighbors clear their driveways of fallen trees with his trusty chainsaw.

Yesterday we invested in a generator of our own so that we will be self sufficient in case of another extended power outage. This probably means we will not have a power outage for years - similar to what happens when you bring the umbrella and it never rains - but we still felt it was a great "piece of mind" investment. I will be sad not to have a concrete reason to go stay at the Mount Merino Manor again but we maybe we will book a weekend for our anniversary sometime just for the fun of it.

The winter has just been gorgeous around here! I couldn't resist taking more photos of the icicles that decorated the front of our home ... or the squirrel who has figured out how to get to the suet despite all our attempts to block him from it. One of our neighbors got a Red Rider double barrel beebee gun. Another has been greasing the pole with vaseline. And still another is using metal slinkies to slow their progress up the pole. David is considering getting a paint ball gun so we can all at least recognize repeat offenders. The hunter among us, well he's the only one effectively really doing anything to reduce the squirrel population.

It's a veritable winter wonderland!! A truly Christmasey, Currier and Ives scene out there. And a cosy one in here snuggling up to the fire. Having our power restored after 6 days made us appreciate the little things so much more and even though we have around 2 feet of snow now, we are all happy it is not ice!!

The birds are grateful to David for dutifully filling their feeders and the squirrels are pysched that he got them a feed block. The nuthatches, cardinals, finches, bluejays, titmice, red bellied and downy woodpeckers and others are all out there merrily munching on seeds.

Weather like this brings out the best in people. We all banded together as neighbors and helped each other out - David took his chainsaw on the road to cut up trees that were blocking people's driveways and after he finished plowing us out he took a few swipes up and down the neighbors drives too. Neighbors responded with fresh baked cookies, invites over for home cooked meals, showers, and lots more. We stocked up on goodies at the store and expect to hole up here for a few days making soup, roasts, chili and other comfort foods to get us through this latest storm.

The fact that we don't have gutters is making the icicle experience one worthy of showing off. We are getting teased by David's sister in San Diego about our "enjoyment" of the four seasons ... but today reminds us why we do love it!!

Mother Nature reminds us again that she is such a tremendous force! We had a huge ice storm last week that blanketed everything and was so heavy it knocked down trees, limbs, power poles, etc. Lots of damage all over but luckily no trees through roofs or cars or anything. We've been out of power since about 1am Thursday and have been roughing it ever since. Well, roughing it is a bit of an exaggeration since we're now holed up at the luxurious Mt Merino Manor. The cold was one thing but not being able to use the toilet or take a shower, quite another. So about two nights into it, when we found out the power wasn't coming back until Tuesday, we rang up our friends Rita and Patrick at Mt Merino (it was wedding central in 2006) and they kindly took us in. Our neighbors are faring a bit better since their homes can be heated with wood stoves and propane fireplaces. Ours works for the living room but doesn't help with the rest of the house and the ceiling is so high that it takes a long time to heat even that room with just the fireplace. The Kosnicks next door hooked up a heavy duty generator so they can use the lights, toilets, and watch TV as of about 4pm today. Now we know to fill the bathtub with water before a storm like this and perhaps get a generator ourselves when they restock (currently a 200 person waiting list!) But you have to admit that it is beautiful out there, especially with the light twinkling through the ice coated branches. Check out these photos from our house. And stay warm!

I just had to share with you what I'm seeing out my new windows. Thanksgiving was a blast hosting everyone here and my next blog will be on that but this view deserved it's very own entry.