It’s the beginning of a new year. Given the events of 2020, I’ve no doubt that many of you find solace in the idea that it’s gone. A fresh start provides hope and inspiration, a clean slate to “get it right.” We have the power to use our minds and focus our intentions on anything we choose.

Why not reach for the stars and make 2021 nothing less than amazing?

Most of us don’t ask for too much. We actually settle for far less than we’re entitled to. When was the last time you really sat, and with wild abandon, permitted yourself the luxury to explore what your heart desired? No restrictions. No critic. Just you and your heart having a heart-to-heart.

When you do allow yourself to “abandon” your usual limitations, you set into motion vibrations that work as energetic messengers to manifest what you desire. And unless you free the vision hidden within, you cannot create it in your reality. Operating from a mindset of unworthiness—which most of us do whether we acknowledge it or not—means that we don’t ask for what we want, fearing disappointment. This point of view all but assures that disappointment will result.

About six years ago I decided I wasn’t going to settle for anything less than amazing. Period. It was as if I flipped a switch. My mind seriously considered the idea instead of rejecting it outright, as it had done so many times before. FACT: I no longer wanted or want to live life just getting by. Settling. Good enough is not good enough. I want to have an optimum experience.    

One area I found myself continually compromising was my relationship with men. I recognized a pattern and decided it was high time to change it. I picked up my journal and began to write without reservation. I imagined the perfect partner. I wrote in present tense as if he was already with me. I permitted myself to look deep into my heart and give expression to what I found. Nothing was deemed far-fetched or ridiculous. I wrote without reading what I wrote—truly a challenge for any writer.

This wasn’t simply a mental exercise. I was using my power of concentration to excavate my heart. Big difference. This is where the magic happens. Your heart is where you are connected to the love waiting to enfold you in its tender embrace…if you give it a chance.

Interestingly enough, when I finished writing and reviewed what I had written, I realized I didn’t make any mention of the physical makeup of my desired partner. I had written about how we would be with each other, the feelings I’d feel, things we would value and enjoy together. The images were palpable and very real.

Yes, from time to time I did reread what I wrote, not once feeling as if I asked too much. I kept an air of expectation while remaining detached from the outcome. Three years later I met the love of my life. Absolutely every one of the things I desired manifested for us.

There is a very real law of cause and effect that works continuously whether you’re conscious of it or not. “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he,” is not an insignificant phrase. It’s how everything in your life manifests. I’ve become more and more conscious of this law. I direct my thinking rather than let my thinking direct me. You can do this, too. It takes work.

The results in your life, the fruits of your labor—or not—are entirely up to you.   

As we collectively leave behind a year that exposed numerous fault lines in our government, our institutions, our social norms, and our relationships with families and friends, why not individually recalibrate our thinking? Each one of us can use focused intent to manifest circumstances that reflect the highest good for everyone. We start small by becoming aware of personal choices. Are they made from the perspective of personal or material gain at the expense of others? If they are at others’ expense, we’re reinforcing the energy and message of separation.

The alternative is to make choices with a positive effect universally, that reverberate, literally, across the globe. By elevating our intent so our decision serves everyone’s highest good we reinforce what we want reflected in our personal lives.

Everyone wins, no one loses.

The more we are willing to practice this, and monitor the outcomes, the more we understand that how and what we think makes a difference in a very real sense. There are no idle thoughts.

Like it or not, believe it or not, we create our own realities. I know this is not consensus thinking and I’m okay with that. My experience has brought me to this conclusion. The more I move in this direction the more amazing my life becomes.

We’re on the cusp of a new age, a new earth, a new beginning in the collective journey of humanity. This New Year make a resolution that has the power to elevate all of us, together. Set into motion a new way of thinking, informed by your heart, which reflects and manifests the highest possible outcome for you as well as everyone else. And be prepared for nothing less than amazing!