When you operate from authenticity, you cannot lose.

Can. Not. Lose.

When you’re aligned with your natural skills and talents—and intentionally choosing spaces that allow you to express them—that’s when you begin to show up brilliantly every single day.

Who doesn’t want that for 2022? I want that. And I want that for you.

But that authenticity is only found in your soul. So before you go off making a million plans and goals for next year, I want you to find your soul seat and get real comfy in it for a few weeks.

Your soul is the mainframe of who you are. Every breath you draw is an expression of your soul. I want you to take the title of this blog—Find Your Soul Seat, Sit in It—as your mantra into the new year, because your goal planning should begin in the seat of your soul. 

December is the month we get busy laying the foundation for the next twelve months. But if that foundation isn’t built on the truest essence of who you are, it can’t help but be a shaky one. That’s why so many New Year’s resolutions go poof before February. They weren’t aligned with your soul.

So how do you find this soul seat that I want you to hang out in for a bit?

First, disable the autopilot feature in your life. Ever get in your car and drive somewhere—and then realize you don’t even remember how you got there? So many of us live our lives like that. On autopilot, doing the same things over and over. (And then wonder why we get the same results over and over!)

To find your soul seat, you need to be fully engaged and present with yourself. Many of us let our careers switch over to autopilot. It doesn’t mean you aren’t working—or working hard—but you’re no longer growing and stretching. You’re not being challenged at work. It’s not sparking your soul. 

So find that autopilot off switch and flip it. Start noticing when you’re just going through the motions. Are you in some grooves that are so well-worn and comfortable, it’s like you’re working with your eyes shut? Were you planning to rewarm some old goals and roll them over onto next year’s list? Finding your soul seat means taking off those blinders and being fully present in your here and now.

Next, you need to understand the difference between your “shoulds” and your “wants.” We all have obligations in our lives. We all have perceptions of ourselves that have been bestowed upon us by other people—even people who love you and want only the best for you. And we all have those decisions that we made years ago that put us on the path we’re on today. You stepped onto the engineering path or went to law school or studied computer science. Your twenty-year-old self chose a path and now you feel obligated to stick with it—even though it no longer lights your soul on fire.

Finding your soul seat means finding the courage to pick your wants. This is hard. Especially when you’ve been operating in your shoulds for so long. The difference between what you feel obligated to do and what your soul is calling you to do might not be readily apparent, because likely there are kernels of truth in your shoulds. You’re good at engineering. Law school has provided a comfortable life. You used to enjoy being on that path. Cultural norms and family expectations are hard to buck. 

Change is uncomfortable. Change is scary. I’m asking you to set aside the fear and the guilt and the uncertainty for now—and ask yourself what does your soul desire? 

Now for the fun part! Finding your soul seat requires giving yourself permission to dream. And I mean dream BIG. What does your ideal life look like? What are those fantasies that have been running on a loop in the back of your mind? Those aren’t silly daydreams. They’re clues from your soul. That’s your soul whispering its desires to you, trying to get your attention. Heed those signals.

Play out your ideal life fantasy to the nth degree. Where are you living in your ideal life? What job do you have? In what industry? What’s your day-to-day environment? Who are the people in this ideal life? What are your relationships? Get granular on the details.

And, most importantly, who do YOU want to be in that ideal life? Are you out front more? Behind the scenes? Are you slaying dragons right and left? When you picture your ideal life, what do you look like in it? What would give this new ideal life a sense of meaning and purpose? What makes you feel like life is worth living? What gets you excited and energizes you?

You don’t have to wait for some big change in order to take the first steps toward that ideal life, either. Rarely do any of us have the courage to jump off the cliff as a first step. A smaller step takes less courage, so list out the steps that will lead you to your ideal life. Then match one of those steps to the courage you have right now. Is there a question you need answered? Some research you can do immediately? A person to reach out to? A skill to develop?

One step begets the next step. Once you’re in motion, it’s easier to keep moving forward—and that’s what planning for a new year is all about. Moving forward!

Download my 3 Ways to Find Your Soul Seat

If you’re ready to make some career moves next year, now is the time to start planning. Join my g2Coach community today and gain clarity, confidence, and a game plan to transform your growth with coaches, resources, empowering content, and an amazing tribe of ambitious women eager to support one another. Get your first month’s membership for just $1!