New Year's Focus: An Empire State of Mind!

2016 has arrived and many people will be busy making and breaking resolutions. In the past I have made resolutions and even blogged about them however, I have re-thought the concept and am not keen on resolutions as they are akin to promises. We should be very careful about the promises we make, to others and ourselves. Broken promises can have devastating affects and one of our top areas of focus should be to love ourselves therefore it does not make sense to strive too hard and let ourselves down.

Instead of resolution I am considering having different points of focus. This allows us to step in where we are at and work on improvements across the board. My primary focus this year is on maintaining an Empire State of Mind. Having heard Alicia Keys singing this on radio a few times before Christmas, it suddenly dawned on me that this needs to be my personal focus for 2016. I have definitely made good progress on a personal level which is excellent as we are the centre of our empires. The next element is to look at the kingdom and see where we need to put our energy.

The number one achievement I need to strive for is publishing my poetry which has been in my mind for ages. I find it’s really a lack of knowledge- the how- that holds me back, so I have tended to put it on the back burner. Recently I felt inspired to prepare the collection and now a little more work is needed to finish this project. The empire state of mind says, ‘I can do it,’ and anything else I put my mind to, therefore it creates great focus. This triumphant state of mind also encourages us to hold our nerve when facing change, knowing that everything will work out for the best; particularly relevant as I am facing pretty scary changes right now that are very unsettling. We do need to maintain vision, gratitude and a joyful outlook however there is no point in denying concern as it underlies our best intentions. So yes, let’s look at the fears and work through them with determination to maintain the empire!

We must be aware that we are the custodians of our empire. This means that we are responsible for setting and maintaining standards within our empire. Our ethics need to extend to all key areas including family, work and leisure. Here are some questions to consider:

•  How do we regard ourselves? 
• What do we expect of ourselves and others? 
• Are we easy going or too critical? 
• Are we only concerned about reaching our own goals or do we genuinely support others? 

Once you understand how you operate it’s worth looking at how other people interact with you. Is mutual support really mutual? To identify levels of support you need to look at the give and take within each relationship; business, social or personal. This does not mean everything’s on a tit for tat basis, more a question of how comfortable you feel with the way a relationship is conducted. There will be relationships that no longer serve you however in some cases a few adjustments might help things run more smoothly. The key is keeping that empire state of mind when evaluating, which means being as objective as possible rather than allowing emotions to rule. One of the best ways to do this is to ask questions in a meditative state ie: quiet, and allow the answers to come to you without actively thinking things through. I need a lot more practice at this! Quiet questioning is a very good way of coping in many situations whether upset or making important decisions- beats being instantly reactive and regretting it later!

I am definitely allowing my empire state of mind to rule and here are the key points:

• Love yourself and others
• Define your empire- people, ambitions, events, networks
• Be continually thankful for all the good things in life- even the littlest thing!
• Pay attention to all your needs: spiritual, physical, emotional, intellectual and social
• Always face challenges and take action
• Create new realistic challenges for growth in all areas of life
• Do your best to keep promises, especially to yourself!
• Acknowledge: there is no such thing as failure- only learning curves
• Embrace success

I think that’s enough to get 2016 started and maybe we can expand a little more as the year progresses. Wishing you all a very happy and blessed New Year- and please spare a second to share the article! Thank you.

Jaz McKenzie~ Word Magician, Poet and Writer. Contact me for a professional review or bio that will be presented in my original, distinctive style to help create YOUR desired image. itsbraap@live.co.uk