In 1994, Jon Kabat-Zinn wrote an interesting book with a provocative title: Wherever you go there you are. As we approach the end of 2009, many of us will engage in that annual ritual of making our New Year’s resolutions. Some will do it formally, some will resolve that a change is required, others will hope 2010 is better than 2009, and still others will toast to the New Year, light their second bayberry candle in a week and go to bed – expecting that the promise of luck and prosperity will be theirs in 2010.
And this is all nice if you believe hope is a strategy or you believe that changing your career, your job, or your geography, will make a difference. It won’t. As the title says, wherever you go, there you are. If only we didn’t bring us with us…but we do.
As you approach 2010, we suggest that you spend some intentional time reflecting on 2009 – look at the good times and the not-so-good times. Learn from the past – both the positive and the negative, then let it go. It’s done. Continuing to ruminate on the past is like driving your car at 80 miles an hour with your eyes focused on the rear view mirror. For some specific cues on what to ask yourself to facilitate your learning from the past year, make sure to see the Quick Tips on Thursday, and look at our December newsletter.
Next, a practice we have found helpful in our work is what we call ideal scening. We create a scene of our ideal future state, how our business will look in 2010, what we will accomplish, how we will bring value to our clients, what we will celebrate. To paraphrase Ralph Waldo Emerson: we become what we think about all day long. We have a choice. We can think about our ideal 2010 or we can hope that 2010 is better than 2009. If we do the former, and think about it throughout the year, 2010 will be a better year. If we hope, well – wherever you are today you will likely be next year. The choice is yours – choose wisely and have a happy and prosperous New Year.
Copyright 2009 Kubica and LaForest
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