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Note from Jessica: Even though this post was written at year-end 2016, the things I talk about are timeless and apply at any stage or season in our life. I hope this post is helpful for you on your own healing and life journey.

A new year is upon us with 2017 just a couple days away. Can you believe that 2016 is over? I can’t! I feel like it was just yesterday that I was making plans and setting goals for 2016 and here I am back in that same place.

Now is the time of year that people are busy setting resolutions and goals and making plans for the new year. But, before we hurry into 2017, I want to encourage everyone to spend some time looking back over 2016.

The Importance of Looking Back Before Looking Forward

Have you considered the importance of looking back before looking forward? Taking time to reflect on where you have been is crucial to calibrating the compass for where you are going.

It’s easy to run from year to year without really stopping and letting the past year’s experiences guide us. Make sure you reflect on all the GOOD and the bad stuff. Historically, I have a tendency to dwell more on the negative than the positive. Even though there has been a dramatic shift in that over the last two years, I still find that I don’t take the proper time to REALLY let the good stuff sink in.

In a recent call with my coach, I was talking about how I was feeling stuck going into 2017. She offered some suggestions to help me get “un-stuck” (another video coming on that soon), but one thing she challenged me to do was really take time to reflect on all the good from this past year.

Today, I want to challenge you to do the same and I recorded this video just for you.

What 2016 Was For Me

In my own personal reflection, I have realized just how much personal growth took place in 2016 for me. At the beginning of the year, I was in a totally different place mentally.

I was ready for change in my life, but didn’t know how I was going to get there.

I knew I needed help, but didn’t know who to ask.

I knew I wanted to take my business in a new direction, but I had no idea what, where, or how.

I had already made a little progress with my eating challenges, poor body image and self-esteem, and overall melancholy mindset, but there was much more work to do.

In my social media feeds, I see a lot of sadness and anger towards 2016. Apparently, it was the worst year in history, but I personally am so thankful for an amazing year. The year was full of ups, downs, and hard lessons learned in both my personal life and my businesses.
 
2016 year was, by far, the biggest year of growth for me in my entire life. Some of it was SO painful in the moment, but looking back I can see how that pain was paving the path for a whole new me.
 
I was faced with new health challenges that left me feeling overwhelmed and alone at times, not knowing what to do or how I was going to have the strength to deal with it all.
 
But for all the “bad” stuff (which I don’t even consider bad — I consider it just part of the school of life), there was SO much beauty and passion and love and freedom that came out of it.
 
2016 was a pinnacle year in my marriage. We reached the 10-year milestone and our relationship transformed into something new. Something stronger. Something more passionate. Something that gives me comfort in a way that I have never experienced. Our communication improved like gangbusters and we started planning for our future in a way we hadn’t before.
 
I challenged myself to face my fears, explore new opportunities, dare to dream, and ask for help. I started learning how to give myself permission to rest when I needed it (this is still a work in progress). I started letting of areas of guilt and shame that had followed me around for a large chunk of my life.
 
So many new experiences and memories that will guide me into the new year and beyond. New friendships were forged and existing friendships were made stronger.
 
I gained so much clarity surrounding my personal life and my professional life and I’m really excited about what 2017 is going to bring. 2016 has prepared me for some amazing stuff. I took a risk and enrolled in a coach certification program that resonated with me far deeper than any other program I researched. I came up with new ideas for how I can better serve my community. Now, it’s time to make it happen.

Entering into 2017, there’s still more work to do — because this is a journey, not a destination. There will ALWAYS be more work to do, more things to uncover, more challenges to overcome, more things to learn about ourselves and our world.

But, thanks to 2016, I feel better armed with tools and strategies to help me continue healing my mind, body, and soul entering the new year than any year past.

Mentally, I am in a much more healthy place. I still have my bad days, but those days are just that — days here and there. Not weeks and months like it used to be.

In looking back over 2016, I am SO THANKFUL for an amazing year. Hello, 2017! Welcome. I am so excited to meet you!

Now, I’d love to hear from you. Leave me a comment below and tell me how looking back over 2016 has prepared you for 2017. 

Happy New Year friends!

P.S. If you’re ready to say goodbye to the years of feeling out of control and compulsive around food (resulting in body shame) and shift into a place of peace and freedom then I can help. Come join my 7-day Food & Body Freedom eCourse (it’s free!) here. This eCourse came from my passion for helping women transform their relationships to food and body. What you desire IS truly possible if you are ready, open, and willing. It is time to say goodbye to the years of control, compulsive behaviors, limiting beliefs, scarcity of joy, and actions driven from a place of fear and feelings of unworthiness, once and for all. Learn more and sign up here.

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