Goodbye, 2020! Don’t let the door hit ya where the good lord… you know.
Despite this year being a challenging one in many ways, I have so much to be thankful for as 2020 winds down.
I took some time to reflect and journal what I’ve learned this year, what I want/need closure with, and what to do with these learnings and awareness moving forward into the new year.
When I close out a coaching relationship, my client and I will do a similar reflective exercise to take a look back at what was accomplished (or not) and consider how any new learnings or awareness can be used moving forward. It can put a nice tidy end to the current chapter… or, it can leave a lot of room for sequels, which is usually the case (exciting!). Life is never as neat and tidy as we desire it to be sometimes…
I invite you to do the same; some journal prompts are below to help whet your writing whistle. Feel free to write out your answers, see where your thoughts take you, and simply be curious along the way.
There’s no correct way to write or journal, and I often find that I end up a long way from where I started. This is ok! The point of this type of writing is to explore your thoughts, not to write the perfect essay.
Enjoy the process and just notice what comes up for you along the way.
Journal Prompts for End-Of-Year Reflections
How are you different from where you were a year ago? What new beliefs (if any) do you have about yourself? The world around you?
What are you most proud of right now?
What big changes have occurred for you personally this year? What feelings or emotions come up for you around these changes? Take your time with this one.
What would you like to say to those emotions, if anything? Are they ok to remain with you for a while, or would you like to say goodbye to them? What does this look like? What benefits are there to keeping these emotions or letting them go?
Think of a time you failed at something this year, it can be something small or a failure of super-maxi-astronomical proportions. What did you learn?
What else did you learn?
Think of another time you have failed at something this year. What did you learn in this instance?
Think of three more times where you failed at something and write down what you have learned, down to the smallest detail.
When you think about all that you learned this year, how will this affect how you move into the new year? What could be different? What will be the same?
When you think of how you want to BE (not what you want to DO) in the new year, what comes up for you? What does it look like to bring this part of you forward?
What one piece of advice would you give yourself to take into the new year? When you think about this advice, what will support you the most in the new year to help you follow that advice? (Support can be anything that will help support, excite, and inspire you to be your true authentic self. Think of people, places/your surroundings and environment, daily routines/practices, etc.)
What could get in your way of following that advice? What will you do when that challenge arises?
What else do you want for yourself in the new year? Think physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally… whatever comes up.
What other inquiries of yourself would you like to take with you into the new year? What would you like to leave behind?
What three words do you want to take with you into the new year? Think of three that will excite and inspire you!
That’s it for now. Email me if you have any questions or would like to share, I always like hearing from my readers.
I wish each and every one of you a healthy and prosperous 2021. See you in the new year!
Sandy
“In the journal, I do not just express myself more openly than I could to any person; I create myself.”
– Susan Sontag
“My journal is the most important book I will ever write, and one of the most important I will ever read.”
– Robert Moss
– Flannery O’Connor
I would love to be a support to you in the new year. As your coach, I will listen deeply, offer empathy, and help you make sense of what’s going on in your world right now. We can talk about anything that’s on your mind:
- creating new habits – or maintaining current habits
- helping you create structure in your life and a plan moving forward – whatever that may mean to you
- help you regain control if you are feeling out of control
- letting go of perfectionism when it comes to your health
- working through emotions of grief, sadness, or loss
- how best to manage stress and anxiety
- creating boundaries with family, friends, and co-workers
- giving yourself permission to just be – no matter where you are in your life.
To book your Complimentary “Meet & Greet” Session and Assessment, click here.
Sandy Swanson is a Certified Functional Health Coach who received her training from Chris Kresser’s ADAPT Health Coach training course (A-CFHC) and is also a National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC). You can learn more about her here and more about what coaching is here.
![In the coming days and weeks, I’ll be sharing some tips and tricks to help you get unstuck - no matter the circumstances of your stuck-ness.
This is the second in a series - if you missed the previous post, see my blog (link in bio).
Here’s the first tip:
Get in touch with your body.
Stop for a moment and check in. Where are you holding tension right now? Some common places we hold tension are:
the jaw
the neck
the gut
the shoulders
Or there might be pain somewhere, like a headache, backache, eyestrain/pain, etc.
I invite you to notice this pain or tension.
Be with it. Breathe into it. Relax into it.
Getting in touch with your body is a brilliant way of not only teaching yourself how to relax but also helps you to be present.
And becoming present creates S P A C E. And within that space there is an opportunity to see what is needed.
So: what is that physical symptom telling you that you need? Don’t overthink this!
SOMEthing usually comes up, like:
I need to rest
I need to let go of [XYZ]
I need to get outside
I need to exercise
I need a good cry (this happens often in real time during my coaching sessions!)
Once that need is met, some things might clear up. You might not get completely unstuck, but there is usually a shift that takes place or a relaxing that happens.
The pic of me is when I just woke up from a nap. I was working and feeling stuck.
I checked in and realized I was freaking exhausted. I needed rest, so closed my eyes for a few minutes before getting back to my computer.
You're not seeing the "before" photo, but trust me: what a difference a few minutes of rest make!
(and my hair always looks better after I sleep on it lol)
One thing to note:
Getting in touch with the physical body might be really REALLY hard for some people.
I invite you to be super gentle, and practice this technique with “nonjudgemental curiosity”, and let me know how it goes!
#stuck #struggle #stugglebus #rest #physical #tension #pain #tipstrickstools #swansoncoaching #lifecoach #holisticcoach #wellnesscoach](https://autoimmunenutritioncoach.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/435120410_964353791722252_2190116072632110028_n.jpg)
![Something I experience in my coaching sessions every day is seeing people who feel “stuck”.
Stuck in a job they don’t like.
Stuck after graduating from college, working their dream job, not knowing what’s next.
Stuck not knowing what to do now that the kids have left home.
Stuck in a relationship that is no longer serving them.
Stuck in not knowing what to do regarding that big decision looming over them.
Many times these clients say “I just need more tools in my life to figure this out, then I’ll be good”. They want “tips, tools, or tricks” to help them get unstuck.
In other words, they want information.
The thing is, there’s a sh*t-ton of information out there. Any answers we desire are at our fingertips thanks to the interwebs.
So why are we always so stuck?!
Information doesn’t help one get unstuck. It can be a starting point, but information alone will not get one unstuck.
Doing the [sometimes hard] inner work is what gets you unstuck.
Understanding yourself, your beliefs, your emotions, your body, how you think and act the way you do - and *why* you are doing any of it - including being stuck - is imperative to get unstuck.
And this is what coaching is all about. To help you better understand yourself so you can make different choices moving forward.
Over the coming days and weeks, I’m going to share with you some things I discuss with my clients in the first or second session to help them better understand themselves and how they move through this world.
This awareness helps them become UNstuck.
Yeah, they might be called “tips and tricks and tools”, and you can absolutely self-coach yourself using them. It is sometimes easier with a facilitator (e.g. a coach, therapist, or spiritual advisor), but if you are willing to go deep on your own and be honest with yourself, I invite you to play around with these techniques.
So stay tuned!
In the meantime:
Are you feeling stuck?
What has helped YOU get unstuck?
Would love to hear from you.
#stuck #struggle #strugglebus #lifecoach #holisticoach #tipstrickstools #swansoncoaching](https://autoimmunenutritioncoach.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/434572858_963909818433316_8140446297598528977_n.jpg)