It’s weird writing the date on today’s, “Best of Our Blogs.” Why? Because July 23rd is my birthday. It’s scary to think a whole year passed by. And what’s worse is that in light of another year gone by, it’s all too easy to ask those daunting, won’t-get-you-anywhere type of questions. Things like, “What have I really accomplished in a year?” or, “Why haven’t I reached all of my dreams yet?”

Ever since I was a kid, I would view birthdays as a rite of passage, a way to measure this year against the one before. And that would inevitably lead to disappointment. Weighing all the ups and downs in one’s past is difficult, if not impossible to compare with the present. Somehow the past always seems more perfect. When you can see the end result, for example, of all the hard work you did before landing a job or to heal your bouts with anxiety, your life seems in order. In comparison, thinking about where you are now in the present, worrying about the unknown future and the endless possibilities both good and bad, the current year you’re in feels less than. It’s easy to get down on yourself about all the changes you still need to make. It’s an uphill battle down a road not yet seen.

To change that this year, I’ve taken something I’ve read in a book called Shift by Peter Arnell. It’s a book on business and marketing, but interwoven within the chapters is ways to subtly shift your life.

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