A TIME FOR NEW BEGINNINGS

This is the time when almost everyone celebrates. Some of us celebrate Christmas, others celebrate Hanukkah or the Solstice, and almost everyone celebrates the New Year--at least for business purposes. (Many people around the world traditionally use other calendars.) Whatever tradition you follow, this is a time for reflection, affirmation and joy.Personally, I don't think it's a coincidence that in the Northern Hemisphere this week is also our Winter Solstice which brings longer days, more light and the rebirth of spring. I've noticed that it's dark when I get up in the morning, it's dark when I quit in the afternoon, and I'm really looking forward to warmer days and more light! My hunch is that our ancestors felt pretty much the same way.I understand that on his deathbed, the writer and philosopher, Goethe's last words were, "More light!" and on these dark winter mornings, I agree!The combination of our traditional celebrations and the start of a New Year make this a natural time to review the past and preview the future. After all, even the sun is coming back! (My apologies to our subscribers in the Southern Hemisphere - your time will come in June!)Through the year, we work hard. We are busy and we have so much "stuff" to do that it is easy to lose our way, to take loved ones for granted and neglect our values in the rush to pay our bills and get through the day. I often think the best gift of the holidays is time to slow down, decorate our homes, spend time with loved ones and remember our roots.Too often, we become distracted by the rush and noise of daily life. Sometimes we lose our way and forget our most important goals and priorities. When that happens--and it happens to all of us at some point--we often criticize ourselves, sometimes harshly. I always tell clients to "Stop that!" Criticizing ourselves is mostly a waste of time, and worse, it can become a way to avoid starting again and moving in the direction you truly want to go.I'm no sailor or pilot, but I love the reality that ships and planes are off-course almost the entire time they are traveling to their destination. Wind and currents and human failures and the thousands of "little things" constantly toss them off-course.Isn't that how life really is? We have a destination, of course. We have values and desires, and we know our ultimate goals, but much of the time we are tossed by the winds and currents of life. We are swamped with a project at work, or an illness at home. We get caught up in a hobby or forget to say "I love you" as much as we should. That's not "good", of course, but I think it is real life. We are simply ships and planes, doing the best we can and being tossed around a bit.The difference is that sailors and pilots are never surprised or discouraged or "lost" because a gust of wind knocks them off-course. They simply adjust and keep right on going and (this is important) almost every ship and plane eventually finds the right harbor or lands at the right airport. We should learn from that.This holiday season, take time to review and affirm your course in life. Take time to shop and do all the "stuff" you have to do - that part is important - but in the midst of the hoopla, sit down with a pen and paper to review and remember your roots, your loved ones and your values.Take a moment to review and re-affirm your goals and chart a new course. If you've wandered a bit off-course, so what? If you've been tossed and blown away from your major goals, note that fact, plot a new course and get back to work. A New Year is about to begin, and the sun is coming back! Start over, start again. Even nature says it's a time for new beginnings.