Two Steps Ahead

Sometimes, we need someone a little further out on the limb to show us we can climb higher than we imagined.

This time of year in the northern hemisphere is a time of inward reflection. Slowing down like a hibernating animal feels natural; if you are feeling this, it is important to lean into the feeling with self-love.

I find my body feels tighter and without the sunshine and warmth to relax, the indoors becomes a haven and sanctuary. Installing air filters to maintain healthy air while everyone is indoors helps keep the sanctuary clear of toxins.

I force myself to walk in the hours of daylight that we have; I walk in the woods with my dog, Frida. The crunching of leaves beneath my feet is grounding; the stillness of the trees beneath the slant light of the winter sun reminds me that it is natural to be still and quieter now.

The shortest day of the year is tomorrow. My neighbor and I used to have a half-full/half-empty discussion from our porches about what the winter solstice meant to each of us.

I am positive about optimism ;)

Now, we are building for the spring. Our businesses are incubating, planning, and building for the new year.

If you are thinking about taking the leap into entrepreneurship, now is a wonderful time to lay down tracks for your future venture. If you aren’t sure where to begin, keep your planning light and high level.

In a wiki style editor, organize your brainstorms and refine them as you jot down new ideas when they come. I use Notion for my startup for ideation, project planning, and collaborating with partners on content. Anything that allows you to keep loose and organized will do.

Loose and organized may seem like an oxymoron, but this is a great mindset to maintain when you are in the ideation phase of any project or business.

Have strong opinions, loosely held.

Our brains are magical engines of creativity; the more you harness focus on an idea, the more background work of deep thought and connection formation happens without you even asking it to; how cool is that?

You know you are in the zone of background processing when you awaken with an answer to a question you fell asleep pondering or dream of executing on an idea that just won’t quit.

Everyday you have the chance to begin.

Every moment you can come back to the place of awareness that you are able to build the life you dream of. You do not need to continue believing in truths that were taught to you and never yours to begin with.

If you think you must do x in order for y to happen, i.e. work until 65 at a corporate job you are okay with but not excited by, know that there are innumerable ways to the goal at the end of that path.

The path that we are taught is generally the familiar one.

The countless paths we walk as individuals each follow a trajectory that is set by ourselves or by others. No one will be able to prescribe a path that can only be revealed by you yourself embarking on that particular journey.

What is greatest to you, is yet to be discovered by you.

These are words of courage and encouragement that you can take with you through your day and as you begin to trust your inner voice.

Return to the center of your own self compassion and use these words as reminders to be brave. The journey of finding your path is one of discovering your true self.

Be kind to yourself and someone else, too.

🔥—Sonia