Blueprint Breaker: Amy Palmer
Let’s launch into 2025 with passion and purpose.
Whew! Is it the holiday season already? Before we get neck-deep into the frenzy, let’s pause and take stock. How we finish this year will set the tone for how we begin the next.
You’ve likely heard the phrase “How you start is how you finish.” The rebel in me has resisted this idea in the past, but I’ve come to embrace the kernels of truth in the message. How we approach the close of one chapter can profoundly impact the start of the next chapter in our lives.
Reflections On This Year:
Consider your intentions for the year. What were your goals at the start of 2024? What was important or unimportant to you? As you look back over the year, consider how your vision for yourself has evolved. While it’s easy to become distracted by external events, focus on how you can generate joy and nurture your well-being internally.
“As you look back over the year, consider how your vision for yourself has evolved.”
Reflecting on personal growth, I’ve learned to balance the concept of “being” rather than constantly “doing.” This involves embracing a state of flow and aligning with my core values, mission, and strengths. It’s about being in tune with who you are at heart and allowing life to unfold naturally, without unnecessary force.
6 Essential Steps to Finish 2024 Strong and Start 2025 Even Stronger:
As you set goals for the remainder of 2024, make sure they are aligned with your vision and values. A fresh start invigorates and inspires many of us, providing an opportunity to improve on past attempts and to reach new heights.
Set goals that resonate with your heart and actively create an action plan, regularly checking to ensure it aligns with your core.
Redesign Your Blueprint:
Here’s a structured process to help you redesign your life blueprint and navigate toward your future with intention:
1. Customize Your Blueprint:
An artist starts with a sketch. A fashion designer starts with a pattern. As we design our own ideal life, it is helpful to begin with a structure or a framework. Reflect on all aspects of your life using a personalized “wheel of life”. Determine what categories (e.g., fun, fulfillment, family) should be part of your blueprint. Tailor this reflection to suit your priorities.
2. Assess Your Current Reality:
Evaluate where you currently stand in each category of your life. Identify both your strengths and your weakest points. Understanding these will help you decide where to focus your energy first. Ask yourself, “on a scale of 1-5, how would I rate this area of my life?”
3. Focus and Align:
Choose an area to work on first. While logical ranking can guide you, ensure this focus is heartfully aligned. Journal, connect with your faith, and be still to receive guidance on where to place your energy. I write the questions in my journal: Where should I start? What should I know? And answers begin to flow through me.
4. Visualize Your Desired Outcome:
Engage in visualization exercises to imagine your desired future vividly. Create a vision board that elicits emotional responses and integrates this vision into your everyday life, encouraging optimism and hope. Check out my previous Kuel Life article that provides a step-by-step guide to creating a vision.
“Engage in visualization exercises to imagine your desired future vividly.”
5. Plan Your Path:
With a clear vision and understanding of your current situation, plan actionable steps to move from where you are to where you want to be. Write down this strategy and make the plan detailed and specific.
6. Take Action:
The journey is where joy resides. As you begin to take these small steps, remind yourself of the joy in progress. Remember that challenges might arise, but perseverance and support are crucial. Stay connected to your vision and find joy even in difficult phases.
Reflect On What You Need To Launch Into 2025:
As you begin to take these steps and think about finishing the year strong, consider what additional support might be beneficial. Whether it’s community, accountability, or guidance from others, reach out and find the support ecosystem that will help you thrive.
As we prepare to say goodbye to 2024 and hello to 2025, remember that the way you close one year significantly impacts how you open the next. Reflect, plan, act, and remain true to your heart’s desires. That’s how you ensure how you finish is how you start strong.
Let’s make sure 2025 is a year of growth, joy, and fulfillment—a chapter you’re truly excited to begin.
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About the Author:
As host and facilitator for the Blueprint Breaker podcast, Amy A. Palmer is dedicated to expanding and amplifying the voices of women over 45 who are living a “non-traditional” lifestyle.
After a lifelong struggle with feeling “outside” the societal norm and longing to live up to perceived expectations, Amy has found peace, acceptance, and joy as she embarks on the next era of her life. Amy was formerly a senior corporate executive, a nationally recognized sales and operations expert, an award-winning actress, a resident of 13 different US cities, and a prize-winning DC blogger.
Amy has a vast network of friends and colleagues with whom she enjoys travel and adventures and a close family including six niblings (nieces & nephews), the loves of her life!
