Who will you "be" in 2011?

There’s a lot of “doing” in our world, not only in our necessity to take action and keep ourselves busy, but also in the questions we direct at others.

For example, “How are you doing”, “What have you been up to?”, “What are you doing this weekend?”, and the one most people dread, “What will you be doing in five years?”

Do, do, do. But we never seem to ask the “being” questions. So, my first question to you in 2011 is, “Who will you ‘be’?”

At first this may not strike a cord with you, and may be difficult for you to answer. However, I urge you to give it some thought. Will you be loving? Generous? Grateful? Energized? In the moment?

It’s important that you actually decide what qualities or emotions you’ll allow yourself to have in 2011. It is through this choice that you’ll then able to really define what type of year you’ll have. Is 2011 the year you’ll create space for honesty and integrity? Or will it be a year of adventure and exploration? Again, think less about “what you’ll do”, and try thinking about “who you’ll be.”

Over the last few years, living “in the moment” and “being present” have become buzzwords and phrases. But what do they really mean? Eckhart Tolle has written several great books on this subject, including “The Power of Now” and “A New Earth: Awakening to your Life’s Purpose”. If you haven’t read either, I recommend heading to your local bookstore and grabbing one. Regardless, the message I want to convey is how crucial it is to stop yourself from being the person who continually runs on the treadmill of life, going nowhere fast.

That’s the funny part about a treadmill. You can be running at any pace, but afterwards, you’ll always be standing right where you started. Rather, step into the person who lies down after a hard run and takes the time to properly stretch. Give yourself the space to “be” more in your life, rather than “do, do, do”.

As Tolle and many other spiritual leaders would say, focus on where you are now. And now. And now. You only have this moment. And this moment. And this moment. The first time I heard the phrase, “This, too, shall pass”, it seemed quite negative to me. “Everything ends, everything passes, so why bother?”, I asked myself. And then I looked again. Every moment passes in the blink of an eye, which means it’s our duty to acknowledge and cherish each one before they’re gone forever.

So, as I asked earlier, “Who will you ‘be’ in 2011?”