I Am Determined

My last post of 2021 celebrated the fact that we are still standing despite all the challenges of the year and reminded us to remain grateful for the gift of life.

As we start the new year, the phrase that came to me is, ‘I am determined …..’. You can fill in the blanks that follow.

Dictionary defines being determined as firmness of purpose and determination is defined as a quality that makes you continue trying to do or achieve something that is difficult.

What are you determined to do or be? Experiences from the past year and reflections on our choices will have imparted some lessons.

Many of us start the new year with resolutions that will require sheer will, focus, grit and determination to even get to the end of the first month. Most people will give up on their resolutions but some through sheer determination will keep going until their resolutions become habits.

After a recent bout of flu, I couldn’t exercise for a while and I didn’t get back into my routine until the Christmas break started, so I am determined to get back to my routine of exercising for a minimum of thirty minutes every day. I am also determined to nourish myself with what’s good for it.

Many of us will have a plan for the new year; if we have approached this in a wholistic manner, it would cover areas including spiritual, financial, health, family/Social, academic/profession and career/vocation.

Creating a plan is only a starting point; delivering that plan will require hard work and determination. So the questions remain, what are you determined to do in this new year? What are you determined to be?

It’s not enough to make a decision to be determined, we need to go a step further to define what that looks like in reality. 

I am determined to say yes to more opportunities but to say yes also means that I need to be prepared to pre-empt and spot the opportunities. As a writer, to be prepared means I see myself sharing my contents in different ways and to different audiences.

That means I need to picture those opportunities and create the contents before the opportunities come up.

I am determined to come out of my comfort zone in terms of the things I say and do. I am determined to not live in or act out of fear. I am determined to go beyond surviving to thriving. I am determined to dance like no one’s watching and laugh like no one is listening. I am determined to speak up and stand up for what is right, true and just.

I am determined to make the most of 2022. There are many things I won’t be able to control but making the most of each moment is within my control. My response to each challenge is within my gift so I am determined to make my responses the best they can be.

I am determined to continue in faith, hope and in love – for God and for man. I am determined to let my actions do the talking for me.

As we start a new year, I have shared some of the things I am determined to do and I ask you to do the same.

Come up with some of the things that matter to you, share them with accountability partners and make sure you stay determined until the actions to deliver your goals become your daily habit.

Here’s to a gloriously amazing new year; one in which we make the most of every opportunity we are presented with and we recognise that every day is a gift to be passionately enjoyed, lived for the greater good and joyfully shared with others.

Thanks for reading and sharing my post.