As the last blog of this year, the first year in fact of this blog, could there be a better topic than the wonderful gift of celebration? 

A friend of mine was noticing that lots of people she knows have been speaking about what a terrible year they have had. She noticed that at one point during the year they decided it was a terrible year. Thereafter, sure enough these people noticed every terrible thing that kept happening. Every negative situation just fueled their belief that they are having a terrible year. Do you know people like that? Have you ever been like that? Has this been your year maybe? You may be in the category of people who have had a wonderful year with dreams coming true. Maybe you found your true love or started living out another dream.

Many of us have had horrible, disappointing, traumatic, terrible things happen this year. For some the struggle of finding work, for others redundancy, health problems, facing losing a loved one or a relationship ending. For others included myself Christmas and New Year’s is a reminder of being without those we love.

Have you ever noticed that the perspective we choose to adopt changes everything? This is true when we look back and forward. For this blog I want to write about looking back on 2013. When we choose the perspective that the whole year has been awful, sure enough we can find enough things to justify that perspective. We then end up missing the good. When we choose to take the perspective that we are very blessed, extremely fortunate and have had a good year, we shift our mood, our expectation and gain hope.

A friend of mine has been made redundant and unexpectedly is facing some fairly horrid health issues. She is however one of the cheeriest people I speak to. She is full of hope for what new and exciting work opportunities she will be enjoying. She is looking forward to how amazing she will feel when her health is better. How do you think that attitude helps her when interviewing for jobs or recovering from sickness? I‘m sure you know that our bodies actually respond to our thinking. Stress, anxiety and negativity adversely affect our bodies.

So how do we adjust our perspective to the positive? Could this be a key to happiness? Could this give us some fulfillment? Could it improve our confidence? Could it be a key to stepping into our fuller potential?

How about using celebration as a fun tool to help us do this? It can be a gift to enable us to stop and think about all that we can be thankful for and adjust our perspective accordingly. Why not give it a go? It could help each of us enter the New Year with more hope and expectation. So, whatever your year has been celebrate!

Step 1 – Let go. Christmas is about good news, kindness, mercy, hope and joy! I just love watching all those cheesy Christmas movies that put this message across. So in order to shift any negatives, let go of disappointment, things that haven’t worked out. Forgive those that have let you down and be kind especially to yourself!

Step 2 – Think about all the good things this year. Time you have been able to spend with friends and family. Places you have been able to visit. Your accomplishments. It could be that you have got through a difficult time and had good support. Celebrate the support you have enjoyed. Whatever your health, you can be thankful if you can walk, or sit, or see, or hear, or sleep. It maybe that you have a wonderful home, a roof over your head or good food to eat! The more things you can think of that are good the better.  I’m sure you can come up with at least twenty.

Step 3 – Be thankful! Thankfulness is one of the top 10 tips to bring you happiness! Personally I take time to thank God for things often. It certainly helps to spend your spare moments just thinking on your day and what you can be thankful for. If you believe in God, thank him. I’m sure he’ll appreciate it! At the end of a year what a great opportunity to think on the previous 12 months and be thankful for all the good things you have experienced. My American friends will have done this already at Thanksgiving, but you can never do too much of it.

Step 4 – Celebrate!  Pick the things you are most thankful for and talk about them.  Let people know if you are thankful for them. Raise a toast to these things. Set the tone for your Christmas and New Year’s shenanigans. Take time to reflect and enjoy the best moments of this past year. It will never be 2013 again.

Enjoy! Have a great holiday time.

Thank you for reading my new blog!

As the last blog of the year I invite you to take a moment to leave a comment on what you are celebrating and thankful for this holiday time.

Also any other encouraging comments you’d like to share as you’ve been reading this blog which I started just summertime this year.