The Season of Commitment…
Posted on:
December 16, 2020 | Doula Inspiration, Doula Training
Everyone is hustling and bustling right now and all I from friends and family members is what they ABSOLUTELY MUST finish before the holiday begins…
They’re SO committed. It’s impressive!
I mean it’s almost as if the holiday WON’T even actually happen, if these commitments aren’t met.
Not until that last can of cranberry sauce is in the grocery cart.
The last stocking stuffer has been purchased.
That last gift has been wrapped.
The last ornament has been hung.
And then, it can begin!
Before you know it, it will be New Years Eve! Where commitments fly like reindeer out of the mouths of those ready to turn over a new leaf. With a cocktail in hand, the make life altering resolutions with absolute determination!
But do they mean it? Or is it just lip service?
Will these New Year’s Resolutions (commitments) be the beginning of a new and “better” life, or will they be packed up with the tree and hand made ornaments, only to come out again next year with the dusty Christmas boxes?
I kind of feel like the world waits to “commit” until the holiday season, and then forgets the power of commitment two weeks into the New Year.
So why the big push? What is different about the end of one year and the beginning of the next that we find so inspiring?
It brings me back to when I was a kid; to those last weeks of summer before school was back in session.
I remember the feeling of new notebooks and new resolves.
“This year I’m going to be more organized. This year I’m going to get every assignment in on time. This year… I’m committed!”
Each year I started that way and… each year that feeling left just a couple of weeks in….
So what is it?!?! Why do we give up? How do we stop this cycle??
Pssst! I have some answers.
- We don’t track it so we get sloppy…. Here is a perfect example. Did you finish your doula certification? If the answer is no, can you tell us exactly how much you have left to do? Exactly what you’ve already completed? Are you procrastinating because you have to call the office with a question and there never seems to be a “right time” to pick up the phone and do that?
- It’s a secret! That’s right… Reason #2 is that it’s a secret… No one even knows that you’ve committed to something. You want an example? Ok! You decided you were going to teach childbirth classes. You took the first steps to becoming a childbirth educator. You “secretly” decided you would start teaching classes next month. BUT… you didn’t tell anyone! You didn’t set up a Zoom account to host the class, you didn’t make any marketing materials to promote it, you didn’t share the news with other birth professionals and you certainly didn’t tell a friend or family member who might hold you accountable….
- Fear of success. Yea, what if this works… What if you actually end up being successful? What if you take a doula training, become a certified doula, and build a successful business? What if you actually find a way to make a career out of something you are passionate about? What if your life is not supposed to suck and you’ve been lying to yourself all these years? What if you are actually amazing and you figure that out? Woah… Heavy shit, right?!
So here’s the deal.
Knock it off!
Set a goal. Commit to it. And once you have, set small goals that are measurable. Track your success, tell everyone you know and don’t be afraid to fall forward into success!
