12 Top Personal Growth Posts - Always Well Within 2017
Was 2017 as intense for you as it was for me? It turned out to be one of the most challenging years of my life.
I know challenges can help us grow if we know how to work them. Still, I’m eager for respite. How about you?
Because I'm going to relax or spend time in my creative nest for the rest of December, I'm sharing my annual "best of Always Well Within" post now.
This year on the blog, instead of just going with my flow, I especially focused my writing on the topics you favored in my last reader survey:
- Self-Kindness, Self-Acceptance, and Self-Love
- Intuition and Heart-Centered Living
- Mindfulness, Meditation, and Spiritual Practice
- Emotional Healing and Emotional Balance
- Stress Relief and Relaxation and Ease
Always Well Within: Best Posts 2017
So which Always Well Within articles turned out to be the most popular in 2017?
Here are the top 12.
- 52 Self-Discovery Questions That Will Free Your Mind and Heart
- Emotionally Absent Mother? How to Heal Childhood Emotional Neglect
- 21 Meditation Tips You Need to Know As a Beginner
- How to Accept Yourself No Matter What
- 5 of the Best Self-Care Practices for Real Change
- 15 of the Most Awesome Self-Care Gifts Ever
- Do You Feel Responsible for Everyone and Everything?
- How to Free Yourself from Unhappy Personality Patterns
- How to Let Go of Your Stories and Be Happy Again
- 10 Top Books That Will Help You Heal Trauma
- Self-Love: Why Should It Matter to You?
- 33 Powerful Morning Mantras That Will Transform Your Day
If you would like to explore further, Here's more of the best from previous years:
- The Best of Always Well Within 2016
- The Best of Always Well Within 2015
- The Best of Always Well Within 2014
- The Best of Always Well Within 2013
- The Best of Always Well Within 2012
- The Best of Always Well Within 2011
At first glance, it might look like I only wrote about self-love, self-care and emotional healing in 2017, right? I had to take a second look myself, but I really did share articles on mindfulness, meditation and stress relief, and a bit on spirituality as well.
I also wrote 12 e-letters to the inner circle, many of which spoke to working with obstacles and caring for ourselves in tumultuous times.
I added or updated 4 gifts to the Always Well Within Library of self-discovery resources. That makes for a total of 7 gifts currently in the library with more to come in 2018.
These are the new or updated self-discovery resources:
- Your Year in Review Workbook 2018 | 18 compelling questions and question clusters to help you end the year well and 24 pages for capturing your insights and life lessons. Also fun to do on your birthday or mid-year to see where you’re at.
- 33 Morning Mantras That Will Transform Your Day | 3-page mini-guide
- 52 Deep Questions That Will Free Your Mind and Heart | 8 page mini-guide.
- Your Stress Strategy Workbook | 17-page workbook with a 4-step, fill-in the blanks process for creating a year-long stress strategy with accountability and habit hacks to help you stick with it. You can start and use it at any time during the year.
Sign up here if you would like to receive my bi-monthly e-letter, Wild Arisings and get access to my library of free self-discovery resources.
What’s Ahead in 2018
Each year, over the past 8 years, I’ve written 40-60,000 words of free content on Always Well Within.
I see 2018 as my “harvest” year, meaning I’ll shape content I’ve already written into courses and e-books. I have absolutely no regrets about offering a wealth of free content over the years. I’m glad I could be of service to so many of you.
At the same time, I need to get real and start generating more income from my writing because the expenses for running this blog and my e-letter have grown as my audience has grown. And each year, I dedicate hundreds of hours to writing on the blog. You might be surprised at how much time it actually takes.
Of course, I’ll continue to share freely on Always Well Within and via my Wild Arisings e-letter. But I’ll also have paid offerings for those who want more.
To give you a glimpse, I’m upgrading my Open Your Heart to YOU course on Loving-Kindness practice, which I’ll offer as a self-directed e-course in February or March 2018.
Once that’s complete, I’ll move on to upgrading my Living with Ease course. Until then, you can still grab it for a sweet price right here.
I’ll also send a second Wild Arisings e-letter each month around the Full Moon with a stress tip and a gentle nudge to check-in on any personal intentions you set for the month.
I plan to host another reader survey early-ish in the year as well, so I can hear your needs, wishes, and requests, and gear my writing accordingly.
Big Aspirations, Habits, and Distractions
As always, I have big aspirations. I’m not always able to accomplish everything I set out to do due to health limitations, but I like to dream big. At the same time, I accept love and accept myself (as best I can, I'm not perfect) whether I accomplish my goals or not. I know sometimes life surprises us and different priorities take hold.
At the same time, I’m taking an honest look at my habits and how I get distracted from the priorities I set. Lisa Jacob’s Your Best Year 2018(affiliate link) is proving to be an invaluable resource for that purpose - there’s a business and a personal edition. I recommend it highly if you would like an in-depth and structured approach to setting and achieving goals.
I'll be sharing my personal insights on setting goals and my favorite planning tools and guidance systems in my new Wild Arisings e-letter, which will arrive just before December 18th.
Thank You from My Heart
As always, I’m deeply grateful for your presence. Writing and creating for you gives my life meaning and purpose. Thank you for reading my articles and e-letters, sharing my posts, commenting, and connecting via email. I love hearing from you and learning about your needs, wishes, and dreams.
Wishing you an abundance of joy this holiday season.
What have you learned this year? What are you letting go of this year? I would love to hear.
Thank you for your presence, I know your time is precious! Don’t forget to sign up for Wild Arisings, my twice monthly letters from the heart filled with insights, inspiration, and ideas to help you connect with and live from your truest self. May you be happy, well, and safe – always. With love, Sandra
