Reprinted from The Austin Homesteader, 2003

I don’t know about you, but I’m not big on New Year’s Resolutions. I feel guilty before I even start. Besides – they have always tended to be the same – and too general to do much good. You know the ones: loose weight, make more money, exercise, have more private time…. These are all noble pursuits, but why not just say “Live a better life?”

Specificity

The problem with resolutions is one of specificity and the fact that they are usually grounded in something negative that we are trying to “make right.” Face it: you wouldn’t be making a resolution like “Loose 10 pounds” if you hadn’t eaten everything that wasn’t nailed down during the holidays. So that worthy thought is really rooted in the frustration that you gained weight in the first place. It’s the same with things like make more money, etc. Most resolutions are based in something that didn’t happen last year or something that did happen and we would like a magic pill to fix.

So my approach is a little different. And – yes – it’s grounded in Feng Shui, but for different reasons than you may have guessed. A lot of folks think of Feng Shui as a form of decorating or a somewhat esoteric practice that’s hard to apply to everyday living. While it’s true that a space that has been Feng Shui’d might feel like it’s been re-decorated, Feng Shui at its core is about transformation – using one’s environment as a blueprint. It involves getting clear about what you choose in all of the major aspects of life, and integrating those with your environment.

Creating the Vision

Prior to a consultation, I ask my clients to be as specific as possible about their goals, using the Nine Life-Aspects detailed below. Create the vision, stopping just short of the point where intellect kicks in as says, “No Way.”

That heart’s desire, once fleshed out, is brought to the conscious level and then into the physical world through symbolism and other mechanisms. How’s that? Well, Feng Shui uses symbolism as a way of reminding us about our aspirations. The next step is to think about what might symbolize each desire and place the item in the space according to Feng Shui guidelines. Every time you see the object it acts as a trigger to remember that specific goal. In other words, it keeps our goals, intentions, wishes, desires) always close to the heart, lifts the spirits, creates a visual image, and literally brings us closer to the event becoming real.

The Nine Life-Aspects

The Nine Life-Aspects are areas of life we all live, but may live them in different ways and with different balance. Each area impact the others, so achieving as much balance contributes to well-being. They are:

• Career (New Opportunities coming to our door)
• Knowledge and Wisdom
• Family (also New Projects)
• Prosperity
• Reputation (Fame)
• Relationships
• Children (also Creativity and Future)
• Helpful People (getting help from the world around us) and
• Health. Each aspect has a strong influence on the others.

Getting Clear About Intentions

In setting resolutions, which are nothing more than our goals and intentions for the New Year, using these categories helps integrate the disparate parts of daily life and create a synergy that supports us.. As I said earlier, the concept of “be Happy, or Live a Better Life” is far too vague to really help us on our way toward that goal. Anyone who has ever worked with kids, project management, or motivating groups knows that the simple admonition to “Do Better” isn’t worth the breath it takes to utter the words. First it implies that someone isn’t doing such a great job and that is the death knell to motivating anyone. This brings us to the issue of the language we use in writing our intentions: write them in present tense, and choose words that empower, staying away from should, have to, more, less, ought to, etc. Now, make your list and check it twice.

Sharing

If you really get into this, here’s another thought. Although you should write your aspirations in private, if you are part of a couple or a family – it can be an amazingly powerful process to sit down together and talk about what you would like to see develop in each of area.

Write your thoughts down on a piece of paper, place them in an envelope (red is great because it’s symbolically powerful and it emphasizes the importance you place on the process). You can put them all together, stand in a circle and say a prayer or a blessing over all of them. My family has done this around a campfire as a way to welcome in the new year and it’s powerful and fun.

Rituals

In China and in other cultures, one practice to send these hopes and prayers into the heavens or the universe is to place these prayers or intentions in a flame and burn them. The rising smoke

I symbolizes energy being released so that it can be returned as your wishes- fulfilled. The New Year really does symbolize new opportunity and this is a lovely way to commemorate it.

Further, once you have written down your aspirations, give some thought to what object might be meaningful to act as a reminder when you see it.

For example, if your wish is to increase your earnings in the coming year you might reflect on what making more money means to you. Does that translate into luxury, time to be with your family, safety, travel – what? One client who associated money with feeling loved, chose a small tapestry purse because of the memories attached to it. Seeing the purse reminded her of the abundance in her world.

Symbolism

Feng Shui books are full of suggestions for totems, crystals – amethyst for abundance is one example, baboo is another. Don’t go there unless something on that list really knocks-your-socks-off and has relevance. There are too many other more personal items that speak to you specifically. You needn’t buy anything. It can be a poem or affirmation you create and placed with an attitude of mindfulness.

Feng Shui books are full of suggestions for totems, crystals – amethyst for abundance is one example, baboo is another. Don’t go there unless something on that list really knocks-your-socks-off and has relevance. There are too many other more personal items that speak to you specifically. You needn’t buy anything. It can be a poem or affirmation you create and placed with an attitude of mindfulness.

Every religion, community/tribe observes the practice of ritual as a way of bringing the interior quest into the physical world and honoring it. It’s powerful and it works. It’s not magic and it’s not superstition. It works at a very deep level and signals our commitment to our ideals. And once we are committed – all manner of things begin to conspire to help us reach our goals.

Happy New Year! May it bring forth the best in all of us!

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