Happy New Year! I’m only two weeks behind with my New Year wishes J I’ve been super busy catching up with work after a two-week vacation, reflecting on the events of the past year and plotting my course for a side hustle I’m planning to launch. I should tell you, I don’t make New Year resolutions. I just don’t see the point. Of course I have areas of improvement professionally, personally, mentally and physically, but there’s no need to explicitly state them on January 1st. I just keep living and trying to be a better person as each day comes. One area that has improved is that I’ve curbed the urge to complain. I used to spend an entire week down in the dumps complaining about some area of my life. If it wasn’t work, I was complaining about my relationship. When the love life was going swell, I was complaining about the job. If work and the man were good, I was at odds with my family. It was always something. But at the end of the day I had to admit to myself that I was the common denominator in all of those situations. Definitely a tough pill to swallow when you’re confronted with what role YOU play in life’s madness, but ultimately it allowed me to see that I have a choice in deciding my happiness and I can’t allow outside forces to dictate my mood. I won’t lie. It’s not easy, and it really is a conscious decision I fight to make every day. But It feels really good to have an epiphany like this, and become one step closer to being truly self-aware. As we often say in church: I may not be where I WANT to be, but thank God I’m not where I USED to be.
You’ll find that I’m notorious for dishing out quotes. I actually gather them as I browse magazines, newspapers, blogs and books. They are helpful to me whenever I get stuck in life. Some quotes are from the rich and famous, some from friends and family members and others I borrow from fictional charcters. I refer to my file of quotes for motivation, comic relief and inspiration. Recently I came across one that is setting the tone for me for 2011. I follow Demetria Lucas, relationship editor for Essence Magazine, religiously via her Formspring account where she answers questions on a number of topics, and her blog, A Belle In Brooklyn (I was recently featured as a guest blogger on her website). The quote I’m borrowing from her was actually in response to one of her follower’s questions about a relationship, but I think her advice can be applied to several areas of your life. I share it with you hoping that whatever area of your life is not fulfilling and making you happy-whether it’s a job, a relationship a friendship or a toxic family member-that you will refer to this quote whenever you need a push to move forward, change course, or simply walk away, so that you can, as Oprah always says, start living YOUR best life.
“Don’t feel bad about walking away when you’re not getting what you need. What are you walking away from really?”—Demetria Lucas aka A Belle In Brooklyn
