Two Little Known Factors That Can Affect Your New Year

I talked a bit yesterday about my parental super powers. Seeing the future is not one of them. Last Thursday, I woke up with a very sick child, having no idea that just nine hours later, I'd be 100 miles from home, at a Children's Hospital, where my wife and I and our youngest child would be for the next week. Life is fragile - not just the physical part, but the everyday part. As you plan and dream and set goals for the New Year, consider these "little known factors" that can affect how it plays out:

1. The Past Year. I've heard a number of people talk about how bad 2011 was for them, how much it sucked and how it was "hands down the worst year of my life." Many people would say, forget the past, live in the present and look forward to the future. However, the things that happened in 2011 WILL affect your future. If you lost a job. If you lost a loved one. If you hit the bottom financially. If you had a major health issue. If you endured a broken relationship. Whatever it was that has you thinking, "2011 sucked" will shape 2012. How your past shapes your future is up to you. If you continue to dwell on it, or even suppress the memories of the past, and allow it to harness your every thought and emotion, you'll drag every bit of the bitterness you now feel about 2011 into 2012, and at the end of this year you'll likely feel the same. However, if you allow the past to shape the present, you'll learn from your mistakes and grow stronger because of the hardships you endured. Your future decisions will occur with a greater degree of wisdom and freedom. What doesn't kill you will make you stronger...if you allow it to!
2. Driving a Sports Car. Didn't see that one coming did ya? Oh, c'mon! That would definitely affect your New Year! Let's be realistic...I have a family...how about a sports sedan?! You know, something with a 550 horsepower supercharged V8, 550 lb.-ft. of torque, that will do 0-60 in a blistering 3.9 seconds and still seat five! Oh, yeah! That would definitely affect my New Year! Okay, back to reality. The speed at which you live life will affect your New Year. The faster you go, the harder it is to break. The faster you go, the slower your decision-response time. The faster you go, the harder/longer it takes to change directions. The faster you go, the farther you have to backtrack if you miss a turn. This year, slow down. Be more deliberate and guarded with what you allow to consume your time.