Your “To Be” List

As you launch yourself into 2017, I invite you to take a moment to intentionally consider who you want to become – not just what you want to accomplish – this year. This month, we’ll be focusing on setting and managing expectations to create a fantastic year…and life!

 

It’s been a long-standing practice of mine at the beginning of each new year to create a list of intentions (rather than resolutions) for who I want to be throughout the coming year.

 

This annual practice began in my mid-twenties when I realized that my “to do” list was running my life. Instead of living mindfully around who I wanted to be, I had become so swept up in the urgency of doing that I had let my circumstances control my choices.  I realized that I needed to reclaim my agency through intentional choice and change my behaviors, habits, and lifestyle patterns to refocus on what is truly important – WHO I am, not WHAT I do.

 

As I chose to live from this place of intention, I began seeing some profound shifts occurring day-by-day and something started releasing in me. For once, it wasn’t about what was left undone on my seemingly never-ending “to do” list. Rather, I was now choosing to live my life in service to my “to be” list instead.

 

Create Your 2017 “To Be” List

 

To create your own “to be” list, start by asking yourself the following questions:

 

Who do I need to be in order to do?

 

 

Make a list of the “being” qualities you desire most this year. Here are a few to get you started.

 

I want TO BE:

• Healthy
• Focused
• Peaceful
• Motivated

 

Then ask…

 

What do I need to do in order to be?

 

Now, take the being intentions you shared above and make them actionable (this is where the “doing” comes in!)

 

This year, I intend to:

• Eat nutritious meals (healthy)
• Eliminate multitasking (focused)
• Carve out time to rest and meditate (peaceful)
• Surround me with positive influencers (motivated)

Now Watch Your Life Shift

 

Through answering these questions and creating my “to be” list, I watched my life unfold in front of my eyes and began changing from the inside out. My former persona of “I can do it all!” that had led me to battle unnecessary anxiety, stress, and perfectionism over the last decade transformed into one more grounded in possibility without all the pressure. It felt like I was 50 pounds lighter and my heart was finally at peace.

While I’m still a work in progress, focusing on living out my “to be” list each day helps me stay grounded. I still have days that hijack my best intentions and times I over-plan to try and control my world. I’m still human. Yet, the larger focus is on me as a human being, not a human doing.

 

 So now it’s your turn. Create your list, then live it out.

 

And if you need some more reflection time to get your intention juices flowing, take a moment with the following questions and see where they lead your life as you begin a new year:

• Who do I need to be to live more authentically now?
• What choices and life changes do I need to make?
• What’s been holding me back?
• What is one thing I will commit to doing in the next 24 hours that will make the biggest difference in my life?

Creating your “to be” list is the first step to setting resonant intentions and expectations for your leadership and life. Stay tuned for more insights and inspiration throughout the month as we explore more together!

Be the Revolution,