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 When did New Year’s Resolutions go out of style?
Do you remember how fashionable they once were? Every year, people across the Universe would declare their resolution on or around New Year’s Eve… and they’d feel so much better for doing so.
Until a few weeks later. Because after that initial shot of self-satisfaction and impassioned determination, as we marched off to the gym, organized our sock drawer or refused to smoke a cigarette, we simply went back to our familiar, lethargic and hedonistic ways.
This is why no one makes New Year’s Resolutions any more: we simply don’t have the resolve to keep them.
So, rather than admit that we’re all a bunch of weak-willed wimps, we declared resolutions to be useless, worthless, senseless, and self-sabotaging. We blamed the resolutions, rather than admit we’re too spineless to keep one!
Now, we make New Year’s Intentions – the kinder, gentler, less-demanding substitute for resolutions. “I intend to eat more healthy.” “I intend to cut back on my smoking.” “I intend to save 10% of my income.”
Intentions are great, aren’t they? They allow us to feel decisive without asking us to commit to changing our behavior in any significant way. In fact, they are really more like emphatic wishes or enthusiastic prayers. They don’t require us to do anything differently; they merely declare our desire for something to be different.
Well, I’ve had enough!
I’m bringing New Year’s Resolutions back… AND in a “new and improved” way!
Continue reading I’m Bringing Resolutions Back! New Year’s Resolutions, That Is.
2012 will be here in 5 days. And as 2011 comes to a close, and this brand New Year looms ahead like a long adventure of unlimited possibilities, you have the opportunity to stop and get clear about what you want for yourself in this upcoming year.
What do you want to experience [...]
 Grand Central Station I’d had a long day in New York City. A day of shopping, visiting friends, riding in crowded subways, and walking blocks in boots that looked great butwere hard on my feet. By the time I got to Grand Central to catch my train back home, I was weary, worn out and feeling slightly sorry for myself.
Something had happened that evening that had made me question my value and my choices. I won’t go into detail. I’ll only say that as I entered the lobby of the Grand Central, I was locked inside a dark emotional cloud of doubt, regret and discouragement.
Then, I heard it. The sound of singing. Christmas carols, sung by a choir.
I looked up and around, trying to figure where the sound was coming from. Then, I saw them, a choir of maybe 20-30 men and women, standing on the marble stairs at one end of the lobby, holding their songbooks and singing acapella, “Joy To The World.” A crowd had formed at the bottom of the stairs to listen, and I joined them.
For about four minutes, I stood and listened, transfixed by the beauty of the simple harmonies and the sweet familiarity of carols. Touched by this unexpected gift of ethereal music, and grateful that my train didn’t leave for another 10 minutes, I could feel my heart break open and tears stream down my face. My dark cloud of self-pity vanished as I surrendered to the grace of this seeming miraculous gift of harmony, melody and verse.
It was as if God had sent this choir to comfort and uplift every hurried, preoccupied train traveler who passed through Grand Central that night. It felt like a Christmas miracle to me.
Now, weeks later, I’ve been thinking about how so many of the magical moments in life are really the result of someone’s hard work, someone’s creative dedication and consistency. While it only took a moment for the sound of this choir to crack through my sullen mood and awaken my heart to grace, that moment never would have happened if each person in that choir hadn’t invested many dedicated hours to their craft. It never would have happened if the choir’s conductor hadn’t dedicated himself to the music and the talent of his choir.
To me, as a bystander, it was as if they’d all descended from heaven to give me some heavenly gift. But in reality, every person in that choir had spent hours upon hours practicing, together as well as alone, learning their parts, going to rehearsal and refining the balance of their unified sound.
Continue reading A Christmas Miracle at Grand Central
Okay, you didn’t do it today, did you?
That “thing” you love, that calls you, that you always intend to get to, but life gets in the way.
You know it’s important to you. And more than anything, you would love to have endless time and energy to indulge your creativity and attend to your heart’s desire. But all the “shoulds,” “gottas” and “have tos” have you running so fast you’ve almost forgotten where it is you really want to go!
Look, I know how easy (and how painful) it is to let go of what feeds your soul in order to take care of the “emergency du jour.” Like you, I’ve had plenty of days where I pushed aside my creative calling in order to attend to my day- to-day responsibilities.
This past week, in particular, I was so caught up with the demands of my business and traveling that I neglected to attend to that which I truly love, that which feeds the best part of me: my connection to the Creative, to Love, to That From Which All Good Things Flow. And I paid for it. Big time. (You may call the Creative your Muse, or divine inspiration, or Creative Spirit, or God. I call that Source of Love, Joy, and Yummy-ness, the Creative.)
Whether you’re a heart-driven coach creating a new program, a writer writing your next book, a songwriter producing a new album or a painter bringing a new painting to life, you can’t afford to put all your energy, attention and time into the tactics and tasks of your business. You need time, energy and space to feed and express your creativity, to engage your creative Spirit and refill your creative well.
Yes, I know how challenging this can be when you’re trying to make a living and stay on top of all your responsibilities and build your business. You can’t help but feel that something has to give. And more often than not, that Something is your creative life.
But is that what you really want? Is letting go of your connection to the Creative serving you?
No. In fact, I’ll be so bold as to say this: the most essential component to achieving real success and prosperity in your business rests in your commitment to honor and attend to your creative connection. If you sacrifice your creative life in order to “get things done,” you’ve cheated yourself, your fans, your business and one of the greatest Loves of your life.
So, what’s a busy creative entrepreneur to do?
Continue reading Why Your Creative Spirit Is Essential to Your Business Success
Do you have something you love to do, or feel called to do, yet you never seem to have enough time to DO it?
I’m talking about “that thing” you care about, think about, maybe even dream about, like that book you want to write, that project you want to finish (or start!), that [...]
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When did New Year’s Resolutions go out of style? 
