© Roz Van Meter, 2002, 2009

To me, starting a new year is like opening the door to a lovely floating stairway.  All I have to do is point it toward where I really, REALLY want to go, and then just take one step at a time till I get there.

Most of us carry large, responsible loads all day, and then barely find time for themselves. Weekends are filled with errands, clean-up, taxi service, family responsibility, house maintenance — and soon it’s Sunday night and time to start all over.

Here’s a process for exploring your own stairway.

1)  Imagine. Think about what you really want, visualize it, fantasize yourself moving through it — feeling, seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting what it would/will be like.  Sometimes that takes a while, but it’s hugely exciting.

2)  Decide. Is it time? Do you really want it now? Is the price of admission too high at this time, or is it worth it?

3)  Strategize. Figure out what you can offload to make time and energy for climbing.

• Less late-night TV, earlier to bed, rise an hour earlier.
• Or serve meals on smaller plates and only fill them once.
• Or delegate the weightiest chores to someone they hire.
• Or tell your loved ones you need a weekend alone, and ask for help in making that happen.

4)  Just do it. One step at a time.

Here are some of my coaching clients’ successes:

• A highly successful tech writer has committed three hours a week to a long-dreamed-of novel, and so far has sent me the first five chapters. I can hardly put it down!
• A single professional woman has put her house on the market, realizing she wanted a condo instead — less upkeep, less expense, more time and money for living.
• A physician has cut back his practice by one day a week. That’s all he wanted, just one day to do whatever he feels like. No projects, just balance and lightness.

My own unrequited passion was to write an ebook about healthy, passionate living, with sensuality and pleasure.  This week I put in three hours a day on polishing it, and it’s shaping up nicely. I haven’t reached the sky yet, but the air is definitely clearing.

Announcing that you’re gonna Go For It is powerful. Somehow that declaration gives extra lift to your wings. (Have you seen the movie Chicken Run?)

Remember to have a good time while you’re stepping. It’s the trip itself that’s most worthwhile, not necessarily the destination.

Which is true of Life, come to think of it.

 

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