Starting Afresh

Spring feels like the natural time to start something new and fresh, to clear out the old and make way for the new.

A spring clean, plans for decorating, attending to the garden.....these are all physical things we do at this time of the year but don't forget starting afresh and challenging our thoughts, emotions and behaviours can be just as refreshing!

So how do you go about making new beginnings, how do you move forward and leave behind old patterns that may of been weighing you down?

Get rid of the baggage that has been stopping you having a new start and a new beginning, this will mean letting go of things you have no control over. If you keep thinking of negative things they will keep being part of your life....if there are negative things in your life you will exhaust yourself thinking about them. Distance yourself from these thoughts, seek out and replace with positive thoughts, challenge yourself to ask why you would hold onto something negative in your life. Let go of stuff you can not control, don't allow it to mess with the stuff you can control!

Pay attention to the way you view life and its experiences. When things happen and they challenge your whole being try not to let it overwhelm you, look for the silver lining, look for the lesson learnt, look for the positive. Life throws us challenges, how we view these challenges will have great influence on whether they control us or how we control them! When we lose something we will gain something else and for every gain there will be a loss....you don't have to be thrilled about it but you have a choice at how you see things, can you see the celebration in it or will you allow the focus be on the regrets?

If life does pull you to a place where you feel totally lost and find you can not find your way out, that the place is just too dark and scary to even look for the positive, reach out! Reach out to someone that you can pull close to you, to be in the darkness with you and allow them to find the light in your place with you. This person can be someone you trust a friend, family member, colleague or a professional body. Reaching out in itself can be a positive experience, over coming the negative thoughts and feelings regarding reaching out can empower you....learning to allow others in at your darkest moment can be the light to lead you out of the dark.

If you find yourself coming through something difficult and you want to start again, take your time. Rest a little and think about what you may of learnt, don't be discouraged by a difficult or negative experience. Once you have found the lesson you will gain new strength and understanding which will allow you to accept the consequences and chose a new path to explore.

Making changes can feel really scary but don't allow the fear to grow in your mind, do that and you will anchor yourself, you wont move forward and there will be regrets of missed opportunities.

Take a chance, make that big life change, face the fear if you do your confidence will grow!

The confidence you find by facing fears and challengers will help you climb the hills and the mountains. Getting to the top is hard work but pushing yourself on is good as being rooted to the spot by fears will only rob you of the views. Your view may be a new job, a new home, an adventure you have always dreamt of going on....if fear has always held you in place and pushed you down, push it right back, stamp all over it and get those walking boots on!

When you get to the top of your mountain and look back, smile.....you conquered the fears and came through the dark times and the difficult moments. You gained the strength to get you where you are now, be proud and look for the next adventure. What you leave behind doesn't define you it gives you the experience to be the person you are today and what you may become in the future.

So when you face new beginnings remember you can take the lead, you have choices. You are not the person from yesterday if you chose not to be....today you are the person because of the experiences of yesterday and tomorrow you will be even more experienced, more knowledgeable, braver and so much better, prouder than you used to be....enjoy the the new adventures you are heading into!!