Second Chance at Your Dream

We stand on the threshold of a new year, a new decade, with hope for ourselves, our loved ones, and the world around us. January, named for the Roman deity Janus whose face looked at both the past and the future, is the month for taking stock of ourselves and rekindling our commitment to personal improvement.

Instead of making a list of resolutions which usually don’t work very well, I encourage you to look within and notice what speaks to you and lights your fires. Write down the two or three things you really want for yourself and begin to actualize them with your thoughts, images, and new actions.

The new field of energy psychology offers marvelous tools for connecting with yourself in hopeful ways to honor the promise you can make for personal well-being. While you cannot change other people unless they are willing, the one place you have the power for real change and growth is within yourself.

Many people resolve to diet, exercise, or follow an interest only to find their dreams eroded quickly with the flurry of every-day demands. If better physical health is really your goal, begin by affirming your most sincere wish for it and commit to at least one activity each day related to your goal.

Here are some suggestions for accomplishing what you most desire with the help of your own energy resources:

• State your intention while tapping lightly on the thymus area of the upper mid-chest. This is the master gland of the immune system and the tapping sends messages to all parts of your body, mind, and spirit. Repeat this intention as often as possible.
• Indentify the words that most capture your intention and memorize them.  Examples: “I want to dissolve tension in my body” or “ I want to release five extra pounds” or “I want to keep my calm in difficult situations, or “I want to think more clearly by increasing my exercise levels.”
• Visualize the action that is most directly related to your true desire. For example, actions to meet the goals listed would be: see and feel your muscles releasing tension; eat smaller food portions more slowly; take several deep breaths when faced with conflict; move the body by walking, swimming or dancing.
• Draw a picture of the action or get an image from a magazine and place it and the words that best fit on a poster you can see often. The bedroom, bathroom or car are places where you will most likely notice the poster.
• Look in the mirror and talk of your desire as often as possible. Make the endeavor come alive as an adventuresome project that deserves your best effort.
• Release any negative thinking quickly. Many people have doubting inner self-talk, a series of constant “yes-but” objections. Begin letting go of objections by affirming, “Even though some part of me has these doubts, I deeply and profoundly accept myself and hold the commitment to my goal.”
• Tap or hold selected acupoints to activate your body’s energetic messaging system. For example, while focusing on releasing the objection to the goal-related action, tap the place each of the acupoints listed here 10-15 times: where the eyebrow meets the nose (bladder meridian) the bony rim at the crease of the eyes (gall bladder meridian), under the nose (governing vessel), at the knobs on each side of the notch at the top of the sternum (kidney meridian), and at the outer side of the hand (small intestine meridian).
• Take several deep breaths, releasing fully each time, and acknowledge your inner strengths. Affirm your strengths and self-worth. Make positive self-statements that support your intentions and actions while again tapping or holding the acupoints mentioned. Examples: “I deserve the body weight that is right for me” or “ I deserve to move my body to enhance my ability to think clearly” or “I am effectively in charge of my life” or “I can manifest what I desire with my actions.”
• Consciously reward yourself for doing the new activity. Each time the action is repeated, ideally at about the same time each day, you will begin to build a positive habit with the self-affirming joy of inner mastery. When the new pattern is firmly in place after 2-3 months, add another goal to build on your success.

The gift of this work with your own energy system is that it’s entirely under your control. No external pill, diet, or expense is required, and thankfully there are no side-effects. The strengths you build are yours to keep and enjoy.

May your new year be filled with the adventure of self-discovery by lighting the fires of your inner strengths!

Dr. Dorothea Hover-Kramer is the author of Second Chance at Your Dream and a leading expert in personal “re-firement.”