new year, new dreams, new what?

Hey y'all I want to let you in on a little secret! Ok not so little but here's the deal, I am the kind of person that is highly competitive, more than anything, I compete with myself. I expect more out of myself than anyone has ever expected of me. (it's true... don't give me a 99% on something! I'll never forget it, just ask me about my 7th grade AR history paper sometime) It’s great because I can motivate myself to new heights if I’m passionate but I also disappoint myself regularly. I’m sure many of you can relate. Speaking to the women, I know you guys expect yourselves to be able to do it all; push, push push, get it done and never let them see you sweat. Sound familiar? Hey men, I bet you guys expect to be able to live your life and never come across as weak. I bet you think the women in your life expect that out of you, too. Guess what? Not realistic. It is quite literally impossible. So, I want to challenge us to open up, get a little bit vulnerable, push back any kind of shame we carry around about not being good enough and set some goals to improve ourselves. They don’t all have to be BHAG’s (big hairy audacious goals). They can be little habits, little pushes outside of that comfort zone.

With the new year, comes a fresh slate. It also comes with some pressure. I want to take the pressure out of New Year’s Resolutions, instead set goals or pick a one word for the year and attach a sent to it. Did you know that the power of scent is the most powerful of any of your senses to drive behavior? I would have thought sound or taste (hey, i love music and I love to eat, baby).Nope, It’s smell. Really? yep think about it...A smell can instantly put you in another place and time in your life. The smell of the hospital room where your kids were born, the smell of your mom’s perfume, the smell of the house where you grew up. It governs how you feel and in turn, how you behave. 

So try this... pick a smell for your goal (hint the picture below gives you some suggestions) and diffuse that smell every time you are working that goal. Here's an example, this blog... yep I've said it "epic fail". I want to post, I try to post, but well {insert epic fail here}. Now in 2015 I want to work on posting more, so here is the deal. I picked the EO called Joy and I am diffusing it. Every time I blog I will diffuse it until the point that when I smell that smell I think "yippee it's time to blog"! Will it happen? I think so! 

Let's put this out there too... You are good enough and worthy of a better self. Even if you don’t have all your crap together (news flash, none of us do). Even if the tape that plays in your head tells you you aren’t worth it. Let the smell help you reset that tape (personally, I'm ready for mine to be evicted!) I believe you are worth it, so that’s one and that’s enough. Just do it.