Just like my last week’s article reflecting on the last year’s ups and downs, today is the beginning of the New Year which is seen as a transition for many of us. It is a time to step back from our life to reconsider where we have been and where we want to go for the next twelve months.

Some of us are naturally inclined toward introspection and reflection at this time. There may be a poignant awareness of the losses and struggles that occurred in the previous year, as well as an appreciation of our good fortune in celebrating the start of yet another year.

In this process of moving from one year to the next, most of the time we often go by the usual tradition of setting resolutions.

We dream of changes that will make us happier and healthier. We make a list of resolutions in the hope that our willpower will be strong enough to launch us into a new way of living. No one at this juncture desires to have negative thoughts that perhaps have been stuck in our minds.

It is easy to jump quickly into our hopes for the future by creating these resolutions. We hope that the changing of the year’s digit will rescue us from past habits and barriers that we have created for ourselves in various spheres.

However, take a second to visualize your previous New Year’s resolutions. If you are like many, you most likely thought about creating a new world of wonders around you or maybe even committing to a new hobby. But how many came true? We seemingly do not find this answer.

It is argued that the many resolutions made are not actualized due to poor Self-reflection which is a powerful process. It is strongly encouraged by many of the world’s great religious traditions and by some of the wisest men and women ever lived on planet earth.

Everyone takes an inventory and overrides any regrets with positive thinking-that this time round all shall be well.

Definitely, to see what can be learned from past year’s intrigues, or that wonderful opportunity to excavate our lives and reconsider what we wish to do going forward.

Most often our decisions are influenced through environment, books, television and the Internet. The idea of spending some several hours or more in living room, sitting quietly and reflecting on self-ability, seems strange and a bit uncomfortable.

This is why most people will still start off strong in developing new targets and working towards new goals and dreams but end up still living the next twelve months at the same level they have lived the past five or so years.

Growing to become the best version of you does not happen automatically. Not paying attention to how you actually need to transform into the person you need to become is one of the major factors that plays into why so many fall short in the pursuit of achieving some big goals.

The best of the best know when they are going to grow, how they are going to grow, and why they are going to grow. It is important that your personal growth plan fits your needs and works best for you, not what works best for someone else. Our abilities and ambitions must match in order to achieve this.

Successful goals start with a strong commitment to make a change. To succeed, you must believe that you can accomplish what you set out to achieve, and that belief is bolstered by the unwavering support you give yourself.

Individual determination translates to communal achievements which in turn grow the economy both at local and national level. It is certain that for us to see the good of our nation, everyone has to contribute something positive towards the development.

If all of us declare to toil and sweat for more gains this year, then there is no doubt that we are going to create unending fortunes both for ourselves and for the country. This is the same principle that applies when we talk about the success of Rwanda depending on its people, and that nobody can define the desired future – it is the people who are in position to do so.

Esther Baldwin Yorkonce said, ‘‘it depends on us, another year lies before us like an unwritten page, an unspent coin, an unwalked road. How the pages will read, what treasures will be gained in exchange for time, or what we find alone the way, will largely depend on us.’’

In other words, for a substantial difference, it must not just be the usual resolutions made at the beginning of the year, but an intrinsic motivation towards attaining and actualizing the set goals. Have a wonderful, prosperous and productive 2016!

oscar_kim2000@yahoo.co.uk