Your Future is in Your Hands

It's the start of a new year, which is probably going to herd a bunch of people into the gym, hoping to get healthy and fit with their new resolutions. Perhaps the craft stores will be wiped out of stock as aspiring artists attempt a new hobby.

I'm going to bet that those fitness regimens are going to fly out the window in a week; the craft supplies will be stuffed at the bottom of a drawer in a month, if we're lucky.

Not to sound like a grey cloud on a perfectly sunny day, but I've seen several family members, friends, and even complete strangers, get obsessed with their New Year's resolutions. They have a bright plan, shining in gold ahead of them, and they claim nothing is going to stop them. Until they stop themselves. They get bored of their new routine and slowly sink back into the exact same person that they were the year before.

And the year before that.

And the one before that one, too.

And I would be a liar if I said I've never done the same thing.

It probably took me ten (possible more) tries to actually take responsibility to change my life for the better. I started working out for a week, got stressed out and busy, and decided that I couldn't do it and gave up. I've tried nearly every crafty hobby that's out there. Now, it's been exactly 311 days since I first made the decision to stop making excuses and get my life together, and I couldn't be more satisfied with that choice. Not only am I physically more healthy and capable, but mentally, I've changed the way I see the world. Of course, there's still a lot I can improve on, but I just had to find a way to flip that switch in my brain that got me to change. I recognized I wasn't happy with my life. I had felt like there was this gaping hole inside of me, missing something, but I didn't know what. Now, I workout several times a week, prioritize my needs and wants, and practice gratitude every day. Somewhere along the way, the hole got patched up.

The truth is, you are the only thing standing in the way of your own self-improvement. Where there's a will, there's a way. And there's hundreds, maybe even thousands of stories of people out there defying the odds that pushed against them.

But it's not my job to tell their stories.

This is a wake-up call. For everyone out there who wants to improve their own situations. And I mean, you have to actually want it. The start of the new year is the perfect time to make a resolution. And after you finish reading this article is the perfect time to decide to stick with it. Not for a week, not for a month, not even for half of the year, but for the rest of your life.

Ask yourself:

Why are you holding yourself back?

What could you possibly gain by giving up on your goals?

My advice to you is: just start. Dip your toes in the water and see if you like it. Then take a step in, then another. Until you're fully submerged and drowning in your own success. The hardest part is the beginning, but once you're achieving your goals and receiving your victories, you'll find that it's not so difficult anymore. But it's up to you to get yourself there. Your loved ones can encourage you. I hope to give you a little nudge, by writing this article. But ultimately, it's you that controls your future.

Come back to this article whenever you need it again. Do what you must, but don't give up.