Christmas 2022 – it's the culmination of a year of glories and graces, of wins and losses. It's LIFE! The Bible says rain falls on the righteous and the unrighteous, the just and the unjust. There's no way around it. It may not be "fair" (don't get me started) but LIFE is happening all around us. I have never looked forward to all that is before us more than I do right now. The question of this year is not, "What happened to me?", the question is, "What did I do with what happened to me?" It's really even deeper than that: it boils down to, "What was my part in the good, the bad and the unfortunate? Did I help me WIN? Or was I in my own way?" It is a worthy effort to jot down a few things. Full disclosure, I've been working through my own business plan for 2023, discussing with agents their plans and realizing again, a goal with no plan is just a wish. "If ifs and buts were candy and nuts, we'd all have a Merry Christmas."

With that in mind, what's your plan for your family to thrive? What steps will you take to get you there? Troy has always encouraged me to calendar family time and vacations. I'm pretty bad at it if I'm honest. It's easier to work, but it's no way to LIVE. My family deserves 100% of me. I'm already working on my calendar so I can make it special. I don't love planning personal time so far ahead…I have always enjoyed working so, with a furrowed brow, my natural tendency is to fret, "What if the business needs me? What if a client calls? What if, what if, WHAT IF???" You can live and DIE in "The Land of What If…" Don't do it. Join me this year: Plan. Execute.

In my personal growth, what is my plan? How am I working on myself to consistently engage and grow? What discomfort am I willing to endure? Am I self-aware enough to set a plan and work it? I protect the early mornings; it's my time for podcasts of every kind. This morning I was listening to the Ed Mylett Show. He was interviewing a body builder. (Stop laughing). Y'all – there were so many takeaways from a subject I'm not at all invested in! We can learn something from everything we experience when we have a growth mindset. I find solace in quiet mornings so a hot cup of tea and a strong morning routine equals a gentle start to my days. I know that I'll walk through the day with more purpose and less frustration if I've been intentional in the mornings. What helps you be the best version of you? Think. Act. Be consistent. Fall endlessly in love with routines.

What will your business look like, day to day, moving forward? It's a tired old saying but it's true: if we keep doing what we've always done, we'll keep getting what we've always gotten. What is keeping you from achieving the things you say you want? Sometimes we're just off-task. Often it is emotion – "Do I feel like doing _____?" That's the wrong question. Last week Jon Acuff said, "The smallest effort beats the biggest excuse." Let's think deeper. It's Monday morning in January and you said you were going to call 5 people every day, Monday through Friday, from January 2 through Fat Tuesday (I'm going easy on you). It's on your schedule. Because you're being intentional, you even wrote it into your calendar as a recurring event to keep you on track. But you're tired. It was a busy weekend. You're snuggling back into your warm bed and thinking, "Eh…I'll do it tomorrow. Then tomorrow comes and you say, "You know what? I don't even like making phone calls. I don't even know if they really work." So instead of making your 5 calls – fulfilling your promise to yourself – you google what the talking heads think about making phone calls. Tick-tock. Time is elapsing, but it's getting you nowhere. HERE'S THE DEAL: If it's on your schedule, do it. It's an easy hack. Don't consult your emotions. Every time you keep a goal, you're keeping a promise you made to yourself and maximizing your potential wins. Consult your schedule, not your emotions.

WIN BIG in 2023. It's in you.