Choosing to Flourish

Hello 2017!  I've been welcoming in the new year slowly, how about you?I gave myself the gift of time to reflect on all that was in 2016-the good, the challenges and the insights I gained.  I found that I needed this time to bring closure to this wild year.As part of my reflections, I spent time considering how I lived out my 2016 word of the year, which was flourish. The definition of flourish that I was specifically focusing on for 2016 was, “to thrive, to be successful, to prosper, to grow luxuriantly.” (In case you’re wondering, my prior words of the year include: Presence-2015, Love-2014 and Joy-2013 as you can read about here.)Each year my carefully chosen word serves as my “due north” personally and professionally. In 2016, I hoped to flourish with my family and with my business. I also hoped I would support others in flourishing in their own lives, whether that be from working with them as a client or simply in connecting with them personally.Here are a few of my key insights about year of flourishing…• Nourish must come before flourish. 2016 was, in many ways, my most successful year in business to date. I worked with more clients, spoke to more groups, attained more certifications and grew personally and professionally. I flourished in many ways. However, by the fall, I realized there was a critical element necessary for successfully flourishing. That is nourishment. You can’t grow and thrive without adequate nourishment. In my quest to flourish, I let some things slide and it wasn’t pretty at times. More on this in my 2017 word of the year post…• A word of expectation? In sharing this word with others, the idea came up that this word could feel heavy-as though there is a sense of expectation associated with it. I hadn’t considered this when I chose the word, but I can see where this could be considered. What do you think?• You find what you seek. I know it’s cliche, but it’s true. I thought about this word every day. I used it to help me make decisions, to keep me focused in the face of distractions and to keep me moving forward when I didn’t always feel like it. I was choosing to flourish and I did. What are you choosing to do?• We can’t do it alone. Also cliche, but again, true… Although I just said that I flourished because I chose to, I couldn’t do it by myself. I asked for support when needed and I allowed myself to receive it (that isn’t always easy, is it?). I also gave to others without them asking (and man is that fulfilling!). I saw opportunities where in the past I might not have. I said no and I said yes. I spent less time in the online world this year (much less than I planned to), and more time connecting with others In Real Life…and I loved it! How can you flourish by connecting with others in real life?My reflections on my year and on this word of the year have resulted in some changes for 2017 that I’m excited about! I’ll share the details plus my 2017 word of the year in my next two posts. Until then, I wish you much simplicity and joy!Lisa