Here are 5 Gifts you should give yourself to make 2018 a super brilliant year!

Why are special days so important? Why does a New Year get us all excited and geared up? Let's be honest, it's just another day, the same as any other. Or is it? What does beginning another brand new year mean to you?

A new year symbolizes the passing away of the old and the beginning of new things. New opportunities, new hopes, new experiences, new achievements, new places and yes, meeting many new amazing people! It means you can let go of the old griefs, heartbreaks, disappointments and failures. It means that you have been accorded the privilege of stepping into another year and you can repaint your sky with the colors you wish to. It means a myriad beautiful things to those who are positively inclined. Every new year is a reminder to live life. To fill your life with everything beautiful. Over and again, these reminders give us the privilege of starting afresh.

Easier said than done, you say? Let me share with you the 5 gifts I have decided to give myself this year. And I sure am going have the most amazing year. Here they are, and I hope they will work for you too!

1. Get clarity : Spring cleaning is so important, irrespective of what season it is! Get rid of the excess load, throw out the garbage, disconnect with everything which drains your energy. This takes some courage because most of us are hoarders, though not by choice. We are afraid of letting go. We refuse to give up things which don't serve us anymore and are occupying precious real estate space in our lives. Understand yourself. Be your best friend: a friend without agendas. Your heart, your home, your work and your time is the most precious real estate. Re-calibrate your choices, rearrange your priorities and make choice which add value to your life. All familiar things may not necessarily be good for you. Take the leap of faith and lighten your load. Make room for the new. This is a sure-fire way to give your wings some room to spread!
2. Be kind to yourself : No one is perfect. No one. Perfection is a myth. It is a conspiracy. Our life is a journey and we all make choices which may not be very smart, on hindsight. We all inadvertently have moments we would like to rewrite! Life will continue to be a journey of constantly making choices, and hopefully we get better with passing years and accumulated experiences. There is always room for improvement. There is always opportunity to change. We all have that inbuilt compass which directs us to things which are compassionate and kind, excellent and valuable. Stop whipping yourself and start loving yourself. You are a work in progress and there is no better joy than learning!
3. Give and receive gratefully : We all love to give and receive. An act of kindness is like a ray of sunshine piercing the cloudy sky. Whether we accept it or not, whether we acknowledge it or not, whether we like it or not, our lives are inextricably connected with those of others. Our successes are merely a proof that we have added value to another's life. The appreciation which comes our way, is the generosity of those who care enough to reach out. Appreciation is the biggest gift there is. Make it an active daily mission to use appreciation to build people, motivate them and make them feel special. Soon you will see that your very presence will light up faces with warmth and cheer up hearts. Your own heart will fill with warmth and gratitude. That is the power you have to impact lives. That is the power you have to enrich your own.
4. Hold on to your vision : It is your vision. It embodies your aspirations. It has got your personal branding on it. It gives you reason to wake up feeling wonderful every day. And on the days which may not be so wonderful, it gives you the grit to get through until the days become so again! Your dream is 'YOUR' baby. That is why is is nearly impossible for anyone else to appreciate it, feel for it and own it the way you can. Not even if they wanted to. They can pitch in their best, but it still will need the chord that is you. Hold on to your dream and work on it, fastidiously, fiercely and zealously, yet gently and carefully. Your passion will be infectious and inspire others to develop ownership and love for your dream. You are the brand ambassador and you are the benchmark. You are important.
5. Take every chance to create laughter, happiness, well-being and joy : Everything is about at attempt at happiness. Success at the cost of peace and joy is futile. Find reasons to add happiness to every day activities. Happy people are more productive and will need to work half as much to achieve double the results. Reward yourself often. Make time to go for walks, take a drive, lie by the beach, go device-less for a while in the forest mountains. Go dancing, play with the kids, take your parents for lunch, pamper your pets, read a book, go stargazing, listen to music and sometimes do nothing. Do nothing sometimes. Just be. The value of big successes will determined by the number of small joys which helped achieve it.
6. This is a bonus! : Never wait for tomorrow. Life is littered with the stories of those who worked themselves to death. They chose to deprive themselves and their loved ones of happiness, quality time and companionship, only in vain. They failed to see the beauty of rain or the glory of a winter sunset. They didn't see their kids grow and failed to be at the bedside when their parents passed on. They never got a second chance. There are no second chances. Oh wait, maybe there are. Here is yours! This is your moment of reckoning. Make a list of all the things you will be able to carry beyond the grave. NADA. Wake up! Enjoy your moments, enjoy your family, enjoy the beauty of the universe, the love of loved ones and the goodness of strangers. Reach out to all those who matter to you and tell them that you love them. Call or visit those who have helped you and tell them what a difference they made in your life. Also maybe, call those who are estranged and leave a door open for them to return. Do what makes you feel good. Seize the moments. Embrace love!