e138 How To End This Year, And Invite In Next Year, With Intention (1)
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[00:00:00] Welcome, welcome to the Heads Together podcast. I'm your host, Gill Moakes, and I'm so glad you're here with me again. Welcome. Well, that was three welcomes in one intro. I don't care. I don't care. I feel like I'm owning the welcome. Listen, I hope you're having a really good week already. I know it's only Monday, but I hope you are.
This episode, we're coming towards the end of the year, and I want to talk about how we can end. This year with intention and invite in next year with intention. So what do I mean by that? I'm going to tell you, let's dive in.
Welcome, welcome to the heads together podcast. I'm Gill Moakes, and I am obsessed with cutting through the noise when it comes to growing your business. Each week via intimate coaching conversations and [00:01:00] inspirational stories, I share what it really takes to get the results you want, in a way that feels right to you.
I am all about attracting higher ticket opportunities, building authentic relationships and creating the abundant full fat version of your dream business. I mean, how many of us have beavered away creating a light version of what we really want? The thing is, I honestly believe when you're outstanding at what you do, there is no limit to what you can achieve.
So are you ready to put our heads together and make it happen? Let's go.
So we're coming towards the end of the year. It's always bittersweet because we always look back and think about the things that we achieved, but also the things we didn't achieve. And we look forward to the things that are [00:02:00] possible in the new year. And we kind of feel, here we go again, where we set in the clock.
And we've got to go again. So there's always a bittersweet feeling, but I think there are a few things you can do, a few ways that you can really make sure that you end this year and start next year. With intention. So in other words, intentionally doing each of those things in a way that feels good.
Whether this year has been one of the best ever years for you, or if it's left you a little bit depleted, I want to talk to you and share some really powerful ways that we can reflect on the year that's been. and reset and then prepare to make next year the most fulfilling year. So we're gonna start talking about reflecting on the year that's been.
End of the year, obviously, perfect [00:03:00] time to have a pause and just look back at everything that's happened. But here's the thing, you know, reflection isn't just about celebrating all the wins and it isn't just about being hard on yourself for the things it didn't go as planned either. It's about honouring the journey.
I feel like this is a really important thing that we so often don't do. We're so black and white, this worked, this didn't, and that's not honoring the journey of what brought you to this day at the end of 2024. Honoring the journey means recognizing your own growth and. Really being intentional about what you want to carry forward with you into next year.
It'd be really good, actually, if you've got a pen and paper or journal or something, because I think some of the things I want to share with you are really prompts that you can use to do this reflecting and set an intention. So a few things to journal around, you know, what have I [00:04:00] achieved this year that I am truly proud of?
That's a big one. Think back. If you have to go back to your calendar and go back over the months or go into your Asana and look back over all of the things that you've achieved. Asana, notion, whatever tool you use. Yeah. But what have I achieved that I'm truly proud of? And then, and this is, again, this is that reframe slightly.
What were the unexpected challenges this year that helped me grow? Can you see how Beautiful that is to reframe it in that way so that we end this year on a real, a genuine note of celebration and. acknowledgement of the journey. So what were the unexpected challenges that helped me grow? And then the third one I want you to think about on your reflection is how did I handle the moments that didn't go [00:05:00] as I'd hoped or didn't go as planned?
What did I learn from those moments? So three things there to have a think about as you're doing this reflection piece at the end of the year. This is a lovely, um, activity to do actually between Christmas and New Year. You know, that kind of, if you are someone that likes to work a little bit between Christmas and New Year, this is a really nice little project to, to do during that time.
It's funny, isn't it? I, I feel like we really rush through our lives. We're always looking at the next thing, the next goal, next project, next milestone. But ending the year with intention, I feel like you get to like, Acknowledge how far you've come. And that's even if you do feel like you're still a work in progress, which I think we all are, I certainly feel like a work in progress.
And there are things that I wanted to achieve this year that I haven't. And so that question of like, huh, what are the unexpected challenges and how have they helped [00:06:00] me grow? How do I handle it? When things didn't go to plan, those questions are so important. So spend a bit of time reflecting on those and write it all down like the highs and the lows.
There's real power in putting your thoughts on paper. Even if you're not a journaler, and I'm not that much of a journaler, I love writing lists and I love planning things out and I love writing in general. I'm not that much of a journaler, like a daily journaler, but if you can spend a bit of time here.
Just getting things down on paper, I'll tell you why it really helps you notice patterns and get the insights that you might not have realized if you just sat and pondered for a while. Yeah, that noticing of patterns, I think I find that writing things down really helps with that a lot. So the second step, if you like, after the reflection piece is [00:07:00] letting go.
Yeah. Truth is we can't create space for something new without first letting go of all the things that no longer serve us. And that can be like habits, it's beliefs, it might be relationships, it might be projects that at one point felt so important but now just are feeling heavy. So ask yourself again in your notebook, there's some journaling, what am I still holding on to?
That's draining my energy. What am I still holding on to that's draining my energy? The next prompt, are there outdated goals that no longer align with who I am today? This one I really want you to do every year. I know that some people, it gets kind of like a habit to [00:08:00] have the same goals that you don't attain, but you keep them on every year.
As goals, you carry them over as the goal for the next year. And I think intentionally asking yourself, are there, are these goals outdated for me now? Do they no longer align with who I am? And is that why I'm not taking the action I need to take to achieve them? The third prompt is, what beliefs do I need to release to step into the next version of myself?
I really like this prompt. What beliefs do I need to release to step into the next version of myself? Because there will be beliefs that are keeping you in a version of yourself that isn't you playing big, that isn't you. Truly reaching for everything that's available for you. What are they? What do you believe about what is and isn't [00:09:00] possible for yourself?
And letting go is really hard. It's uncomfortable. I get that. But when you do create space, you are genuinely making room for something better to come in. So as we're wrapping up this year, I think it's really important to thank whatever it is you're releasing. You know, it has served you in some way. You might not be able to see that.
Whatever it is has brought you to where you are now. It's served you in some way, but now it's time to move forward. So that's this, the middle piece. It's the reflecting on the year that's been, and then the letting go of what no longer serves us so that we can then move into the third part, which is inviting in your vision for the new year.
And I love this part. This is my favorite part, obviously, of course, because it's all about possibility. You know, Instead of focusing on new year resolutions, [00:10:00] because they often feel like obligations, don't they? I would really encourage you to think wider. Think about your vision for the year ahead and think about it in terms of what do you want to feel?
How do you want to feel? What experiences do you want to create? And here's the biggie. Who do you want to become in the process? That gives me goosebumps when I think about that. Who do I want to become next year? So, again, three prompts that you might like to journal on. The first one is, what do I want to be celebrating this time next year?
What would feel good? What would feel awkward? feel really good to be celebrating. The next one is what will make me feel deeply fulfilled, aligned, and inspired?[00:11:00]
What will make me feel deeply fulfilled, aligned, and inspired? And then bringing it back to intention again, how can I live and work more intentionally in the year to come? I think if we're honest with ourselves, living intentionally is something that we all aspire to. But I don't know that we all sustain that commitment as we go through the year.
We always become more reactive. We always tend to kind of, you know, have our path bleeding out in front of us, but then things happen and we take diversions, which is absolutely natural. We want a meandering path. We don't want to be stuck or trapped on one pathway. But I do think that If we can really weave into our lives more accountability and more opportunities to check in [00:12:00] around our intentionality.
It's really going to pay dividends. Visualize the best version of yourself over the next 12 months. Right? This is your chance to really set the tone for the year ahead. Invite this next year in, real clarity around what you want and what the best version of you looks like. Something really practical that you could do after this is to create a vision board actually.
Now I get very stuck with vision boards because I tend to go down rabbit holes, especially on Pinterest, but they are useful things to do. Again, it's another lovely activity to do between Christmas and New Year is creating an inspirational vision board that really shows. The person you're going to be a year from now, what you want to accomplish, how you want to feel.
Another way of doing it, if vision boards aren't your thing, and you can do an actual vision [00:13:00] board or Pinterest one or just a digital one in Canva or something, but if vision boards aren't your thing, another way you can do this is write a future letter to yourself. And you kind of do it in the present tense.
So you're describing detail, the person you are a year from now and what you've accomplished and how you feel. And you can keep that as a reminder of what you're working towards. I hope that's been useful. I personally love this practice of reflecting, releasing, and setting intentions, inviting in what you want for the new year.
I really love it. You know, as we wrap up, I just want to leave you with a simple but actually really powerful practice that you might like to do. Set some really quiet time aside, where you're not going to be disturbed, and light a candle. And if you're [00:14:00] not the sort of person that normally does this, Give it a go.
What can the harm be? Unless you burn the house down and then, uh, please do not blame me. I think there's something beautiful about this. So just taking some really quiet time, lighting a candle, taking a few deep breaths and creating that moment of silence and stillness. Because you know that's when you can really hear what comes up and reflect on the year that's ending.
And in your mind, welcome the energy of the new year. It's kind of like a symbolic way to close one chapter and open another, with real intention. Simple, simple practice, but just something lovely to do at the end of the year. And, um, Again, it's about honoring the journey of this year that we're leaving behind.
What has it brought you? What are you thankful for? Okay, I hope you've enjoyed this episode. I actually kind of love this time of year, so [00:15:00] I do hope that all is well with you. and that you can get to enjoy some quiet time as well as all of the madness of this time of year. Thank you for joining me. I'll be here again, of course, same time, same place next week.
Bye for now.
I hope you enjoyed this episode and that getting our heads together this week has filled your mind with what's possible. If you love the show, would you do me a massive favour please? Would you leave a 5 star rating on Apple Podcasts? It would really help me put more heads together, reach more ears and expand more minds.
Until next week, bye for now.
