Bring on 2012.

I've been procrastinating writing this post for over a week now.  I feel like I must do some kind of "Reflections of 2011" or "Recap of the Year".  It's not mandatory for bloggers, nor is anyone forcing me to do it...but I know I should do one for my own sake - I strongly believe in the learning opportunities that arise out of conscious reflection and in this case, I had a lot to learn.

Lucky for you, most of my reflection is done.  I spent the last few days contemplating my feelings over the course of the year and diagnosing why exactly I am left with the thought that I was completely lost and unproductive for the majority of 2011.  I came up with one glaring issue that needs to be corrected.

Usually I have a plan - a vision for the year.  I have set goals, lists, agendas and diaries to keep me on track.  I went into 2011 lacking many of these things.  I'm not sure why.  2010 was a life-changing year (see "Reflections on 2010") and I was feeling very inspired entering 2011.  Perhaps I got too inspired and thought I had everything under control...that I'd outgrown the sacred acts of planning and reflection.  For whatever reason, I winged it - and now I have learned my lesson.

My biggest take-away from 2011 is knowing that I need to always have a clear plan.  I am not talking about constantly living my life according to a set of rules or expectations, I'm talking about setting a vision and being aware of it at all times.  My vision is allowed to change however and whenever I want it to, but the important part is to always know what it is and keep it at the core of my daily intentions.  Without a vision, I stray quickly.  I am one of those who have extremely diverse interests.  It's easy for me to start 1million-plus-one projects without finishing any of them.  I need my vision to keep me on track and remind me of what's important.  In 2011, I was not on track.

The holidays has proven to be a beneficial time for soul searching.  I decided that I know who I am today and I have a clear(er) vision of who I want to be tomorrow.  This exercise of setting a vision has made me realize where the gaps are, and what I need to do to fill them.  This relates to:

• Blogging (where I want to focus attention, how often I want to write)
• Work (what I want to be an expert it and how I can get there)
• Personal Relationships (who deserves my time, who brings me down, and what types of personalities I need more/less of)
• ...and everything else in between.

Now that I've taken some time to think about these things, I feel good.  I feel ready.  I created a vision board to remind me of what I want to achieve and who I really want to be, inside and out.  This board is hung on my wall, right beside my closet door so I will see it everyday.  I will remind myself everyday of what I want to accomplish.  I wont' share the contents of my board with you yet (while I do believe in announcing intentions and putting positive thoughts out to the universe, I also believe that talking too much about something is a surefire way of making sure it doesn't happen), but when I get to where I want to be, you'll be first to know.

I procrastinated this post for so long because I didn't want to write about all the things I didn't do in 2011.  But now I am glad I wrote it.  It's  taken a positive spin as I look forward onto 2012 instead of dwelling on the year past.

I will end this post with a glimpse of what my holidays looked like...

Healthy lifestyle reading.

Drank my problems away...with tea ;)

Snuggles, contemplation, snuggles.

Registered for the Sporting Life 10km run on May 13th, received a free $50 gift card :)

It was a good holiday season for me.  I am so glad to be back on track and am looking forward to making things happen in 2012!  Hope you'll join me for the ride :)

All the best for a wonderful, productive, inspiring year!

- Anjali
xoxoxo