The new year doesn't solve your problems - but this tip for a better life will help a lot

(By Eldad Ben-Moshe ✨ Reading Time: 4 minutes)

Loved ones ❤

In truth, starting a new year means nothing.

It’s just another story we’re telling ourselves.
It’s not a fact that a new year just started - it’s a story.

It’s not a new year in China.
It’s not the new year according to the Jewish calendar, either.

The animals, the plats, the trees -
they know nothing about a new year starting.

Why is that important?
Because a 'new year' changes nothing.

That the pages in the calendar say '2021' will not make your life any better.
It will not solve your problems.

You’ve already started many new years.

Did that solve the causes of your suffering?
Did that solve all your problems?
Probably not.

But that doesn’t mean we can’t use the 'new year' story to make our lives better, right?

After all, the new year is like a yearly notification that grabs your attention.
It’s of the same essence as a bell that rings every hour,
a sign that gets your mind’s attention.

And once you’re more attentive, less automatic, you can make better choices.

A new year changes nothing. It solves nothing.
But it can serve as a wake-up call if you choose to make it so. 

We want the magic pill: a new year that will come and change everything.
But we’ve already been there.
We know magic pills don’t work.

At most, they make a short term change.
In truth, no magic pill really solved our problems.

But making a real change in your life - internal and external -
can make huge changes.
Especially internal change, by the way.

And as much as we hate it, more likely than not, it will be one small step at a time.
I can tell you what you want to hear, or I can tell the truth.
I choose the truth. 

So here’s an easy, powerful thing my wife and I do every new year:

We take time to think about what’s our ‘word of the year.’
This word will be a reminder and our focus throughout the entire year to come.

It sets an intention, and if you keep reminding yourself of it during the year,
it creates an anchor, a habit, a rope that helps you climb up from
dark holes to which we fall during our lives.
 

For example, in 2018 my word of the year was ‘I do not know what anything is for.’
(It's one of A Course in Miracles’ most loved daily lessons- lesson 25).

ok, I know it’s not a word but who cares, It's not about form and definitions,
It's all about the essence.

And every time I got upset (of course I get upset, don’t be silly ;-) )
I would remember it.

And because it’s totally true for me, it really helped me out. Every time.
So it’s like a good friend that comes helping you anytime you need assistance.

In 2019, my word of the year was ‘focus.’

I chose it because I knew that in 2019 I’ll be launching the Better Life Awareness Center.
Launching a new business requires focus.

Even more so, I knew that if all goes well, I’ll be a father to a newborn in 2019.
New business and a new, firstborn baby?
That requires laser-focused focus…

But that word was there with me throughout the entire
trials and tribulations of 2019.

It worked ;-)

Practical, Actionable steps:

What’s your word of the year for this year?

Share it with me.

You can send an email, use the 'contact us' form,
or the chat icon if you want to make it private.

Or you can just post it in the comments below.


Here’s why sharing it with me is a great idea:

1. Accountability works.
   Research shows that sharing your intentions and decisions with others
   makes you much more likely to follow through, to actually do it.
   
   So in our case, it will make you much more likely to actually use your word of the year throughout the year.
   
   And that’s kind of the point, right? ;-)
   
   
2. If you share yours with me,
   I’ll reply with mine… and it’s a good one!
   
   
3. Why not have an experienced coach's feedback - for free?
   
   Use this opportunity.
   Send your word, or better yet - send a few sentences about
   why this is your word for the year.
   
   Who knows, maybe I’ll even surprise you with a tip or feedback…
   You know I love being of service to our community, right?

To your better life,
with tons of 💖

Eldad Ben-Moshe
Founder, Teacher, and Coach
Better Life Awareness Center                

P.S.

The concept of ‘word of the year’ is getting hot in the last years,
but here’s something no one talks about and is extremely useful.

1. Look at the year that passed -
   and see if the word that you chose was relevant, and how did it help you.
   
   
2. Look at the year that passed -
   and choose a word (or a phrase) that sums that year for you.
   
   Make it different than your word of the year, though.
   I call it the retrospective word of the year. 
   
   For example, for me, 2019’s retrospective word of the year is “Matan” -
   that’s our boy’s name, and it also means giving in Hebrew.
   
   Of course, you can do that even if you didn’t have a ‘word of the year’ for 2019.
   
   After all, looking back, learning from what happened, and implementing
   it for the present, is often associated with... wisdom.
   
   Not a bad way to start your new year.
   
   

And yes, you can send that to me too.
I’ll be happy to hear from you, and, again, perhaps I’ll be able to reply with useful feedback...

Happy new year!