Live for Change
Written by Nelson Briceno
December 2017
New Year, Focus on Personal Growth
It is almost the end of another year; ok let’s rephrase it, “it is almost the end of another amazing, great, super year”. This is much better! When the holiday season is here, it is the best time of the year, it makes me so happy, hopeful and at the same time I take this time to reflect on all the things I did this year: goals a set last year, all the achievements, how many people I empowered and made feel better, the struggles I had and how I handled them and how much I learned from each situation. It is so great to be able to understand why we are here after all. Well, maybe Christmas and the holidays are the perfect time to sit in a nice comfy place with a cup of hot chocolate and just start the report of your year.
Every year I like to set goals for the next year. How I do it? Very simple, just I write down on a piece of paper all the things that I want to embark on and is attainable at this time of my life. After I write the goals I attach them to the string of some balloons and on December 31st after midnight I go out and release it to the sky, and let the universe to compromise with me… and of course I have a copy of the goals!
This year I want to focus on my personal growth and I am very fond of Gestalt techniques which has helped me to focus on my present to favor self- realization and more accurate decision making, in addition to allowing me to grow on a personal level in a freer and more consistent way with my needs.
I am going to share with you some of the techniques and hopefully they will help you to focus on your personal growth next year.
One of the things that we have to attend to is Pending Issues; it is referring to those past events that affect our present. It is important to take care of those unmanaged emotions, uncomfortable feelings, personal bagged that we have been carrying for long time and it doesn’t allow us to move forward. According to the Gestalt, all of us have outstanding issues with friends, relatives, and even people who are no longer with us. We need to confront them and sometimes we must to say out loud “STOP”. You can carry out a simulation, a mental process of reunion, and farewell. In my show laugh or go Bananas I do a practical exercise which a called “Trash the Negatives” where you write down all those issues that bothering you and them burn them or trash it out.
Self-talk, maybe many of you already doing it. Take time to speak out loud and vent all those things that bother you and you have kept them inside for a while. I remember when I lived in Madrid, I was lonely and I didn’t have anyone who I could talk about my feelings. I went to a park and start talking out loud about what I was feeling at the moment. It was a great time I had with myself and learnt that I was my best friend and supporter.
I am responsible, it is another technique that Gestalt refers and it can be very helpful practicing day to day in the game of “I am accountable”. It seems easy but it requires is to compromise. The idea is to permit ourselves to be conscious of what is happening around, what we perceive, we accepted and we build an active attitude turn change. For instance, if you are going through a difficult time at home, work with your personal life, and you think about constantly, and get stress, you can change it by saying, I am responsible for that I accept that I have to make the appropriate changes.
It is important to transform the questions into affirmations; it is another Gestalt technique that has been helping me a lot. How we do that? Very simple, we all have those days that when we get home we ask ourselves “but, why I feel like this? Why do I feel anxiety, desperate and without strength? How we can transform into affirmation:
Examples: Why I am feeling so bad today? = today, I feel bad; I am going to do everything in my power to change this sensation and is going to be a better day tomorrow. Another example, why do I have the sensation that my boss doesn’t like me? = My boss treated me with indifference, I am going to ask my boss if there is a problem.
The only way to achieve a real personal growth is to become responsible, to be brave with ourselves and act accordable to favorable our progress, our mental maturity. Let’s put these simple techniques in practices and get the benefits from it.
Remember, we are moving toward to a new year, new challenges, a new adventure full of great things and remarkable opportunities. Embrace the New Year with love, respect, patience and with lot of fun.
Until next year my dear followers and continue sharing your positive power to others because we need people like you to make this place a better place.
I want to thank from the bottom of my heart to those that let me know that they have read my humble motivational articles. To all of you I will give you my Christmas present, “My best wishes and positive energy to you and everything you plan for the next year will happen to you.”
Let’s open the bottle of champagne and celebrate this time of the year, FELIZ NAVIDAD!