You’ve probably been focused on everyone else this holiday season and hardly taken a chance to catch your breath … you’ve been pulled at the seams and pushed over the edge. You just needed to get through the last 2 weeks and breath again after 2016 rolled in.

I get it.

Ending one year and starting the next can be difficult and overwhelming. It’s a mixed bag of fun and freak-out, delight and dread.

How come?

Piled on top of our pushed-to-far lives is a constantly growing bunch of extra stuff to do.

And … I hate to tell you this … but another year has GONE. As well as our lives being crazily chaotic, we realize that they’re also flying right on by. While our internal Humpty Dumpty balances on the wall of life we end up asking, “What am I doing with my life?”

For me the last few weeks of every year are a mix of tension and panic, just like turning the handle of a jack-in-the-box. I know there’s a crouched clown waiting to freak me out any second, but I just keep on cranking … crank — wait — scream — repeat.

That’s how a lot of my life seems when I’m drowning in daily details, forgetting why I’m even cranking the handle in the first place. It takes life’s shocks to make me realise it and notice what I’m doing. I realise I can stop, let go of the handle, and walk away any time I want.

You can as well. There’s just 5 questions you need to ask yourself …

So this week, I decided to stop getting wound up about another year escaping my grasp and take a few moments out. One afternoon I sat down with my iPad and some cold brew coffee. I closed my eyes and imagined myself a year go in a specific place and time. From that imagined space, I asked myself, and answered the following:

What would ‘2014 me’ say “thank you” for to my (current) ‘2015 me’?

What would ‘2014 me’ say “congratulations!” for to (current) ‘2015 me’?

How am I wiser, smarter, stronger or better than this time a year ago?

In the past year what have I learned about who I am?

What big or small things would I like to celebrate in 2015?

Armed with clear answers and a refreshing outlook, I was able to take a deep breath and answer 5 more questions:

What served me well and worked for me in 2015?

What didn’t work for me?

What do I want to take with me into 2016?

What am I going to leave behind in 2015?

What is my most important desire for 2016?

I realised I don’t have to keep on doing something just because I’ve already been doing it. I can change things up – take things out of the equation or add things in. I can re-imagine my life. Not just because it’s the start of a new year either. I can ask these questions in August or June. I can celebrate whatever works and I can toss out and leave behind what doesn’t. I can be grateful for both of these. I can tell myself how great I’ve done with what I’ve achieved and forgive myself for what I’ve blown.

Now it’s your turn too.

Make a date with yourself – it may be early, or maybe even late. Maybe along with a coffee curled up by a fire or a cool drink in a summer garden. Find your favourite spot and give yourself this wonderful gift.

You’ll be amazed at what you’ve already accomplished and excited about what’s ahead for you.

Leave a comment below with one of your answers from the questions above … and I will too 😀