Resolutions require resolve. Or, just who do you think you are?

Here we are. It’s the end of January. And you’re reading yet another blog about resolutions. Will they never end?

Goals. Do you remember setting goals for yourself a few weeks ago? The first of the year we were all thinking about what we’d like to accomplish in the new year. We were bright-eyed and optimistic.

So much promise. We have 366 new days; each one filled with hope and abundant potential.

Fundamental change. We know we have to change our thoughts and behaviors if we want our lives to be different. We deserve to have lives that are abundantly fulfilling and abundantly fulfilled.

We deserve more affluence. More awareness. More love. More opportunities to provide meaningful service to our community. More clarity so we can recognize our potential, our destiny.

Resolutions. With exuberant optimism we wrote our New Year’s resolutions. In the spirit of the moment, everything seemed possible! We affirmed that we were living our visions. It felt good. True. It was empowering. Then we got in our cars and drove home.

That was a few weeks ago. How’s it working out for you so far? Are you any closer to attaining your goals? No pressure; but you’ve only got 11 more months.

Focus on one. Do you even remember what you wrote? Check your list. If what you “treated” for is not the singular top priority, decide what is. Fix your focus on one goal. One resolution. Let this one target be the rhythm of your life’s drumbeat.

To change a pattern, it involves a whole lot of focus; and maintaining intense focus takes effort. Finding a support network is important too. We know that.

Most of us have already created dramatic changes in our lives. For example, many of us used to smoke cigarettes. The fact that we don’t anymore, says a lot about us. Aren’t we amazing?

When I quit smoking, the effort took time and energy. I fought the cravings every minute, every hour, every day, for weeks, months, years, and even decades. It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t easy. Step-by-step, it was a long uphill slog.

Was it worth the effort? It was. Besides the initial goal of creating a healthier body and lifestyle, I gained the confidence that I have the tenacity to accomplish anything.

Quitting a cigarette or any addictive habit isn’t easy. It’s not a one time decision. It takes persistence. It’s a choice that has to be repeated again and again and again. That takes resolve. Often it takes failing and failing, before we finally realize we’ve succeeded.

Discipline and self-control. If your personal history includes having restructured your life, switched professions, or changed your relationship status, you can do anything. You have the discipline and self-control to change undesirable behaviors.

Job change. One undesirable behavior is an unsatisfying job. To discover, create and morph to a better, more satisfying career, it’s the same process. Use your resolve.

You need to apply as much patience, tenacity, and energy to your new venture as you did when you quit smoking.

Let’s say that you have resolved, set as your goal, to learn to help dogs using massage. You are going to do it right, and train to be a professional canine massage practitioner. Then, you’ll create a meaningful and successful business.

Monkey mind. What do you think is keeping you from attaining your goals? Is it time, money? Are you too young, too old? Are you too frail, too busy? Are you dependent on corporate promises of security and insurance? Is your experience in a different career track?

When I began PetMassage, I knew very little about dogs. At the time, I was an LMT and RN. I knew about massage; my expertise and passion was in using massage to help horses. My epiphany https://petmassage.com/about/ showed me the potential good you and I can accomplish for all of humanity with canine massage. I immediately committed myself to this powerful vision.

I resolved to learn as much as I could about dogs and what others before me had developed. I read everything I could find that had been written about canine massage. I attended dog shows. I learned about breeds, behaviors, body language, and I practiced and experimented to confirm what I believed I knew.

I was not a writer. The last paper I recalled writing was a report decades ago in college for an Archeology class. As for teaching, I’d never led a workshop or taught any sort of class. Giving a speech, even in front of group of friends, was numbingly terrifying.

Out of my comfort zone. I accepted that to promote the canine massage I experienced energetically, I needed to learn how to write, teach, and perform as a public speaker.

After 20+ years I’m still working on it. Still learning. Still evolving.

Dogs! The best part of my journey is that I’ve grown to appreciate dogs. That’s an understatement. I proudly claim the mantle of ODP, Obsessive Dog Person. I am giddy happy whenever I get to massage a dog.

Focus and resolve. Over the years it has taken continuous conscious attention to my choices, and celebrating each tiny victory along the way, to stay the course. There were times when it was definitely a slog. There were times when I was seduced by distractions. And I maintained my resolve. Now that course is pretty. Very pretty. I cannot imagine a more joyful and fulfilling life and occupation.

Taste the strawberry. If this year’s resolution is to learn canine massage and/or PetMassage canine aquatic massage, you’ve chosen to acquire a most desirable behavior.

Bring your resolve. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel. I’ll help with the implementation.

Register for a PetMassage Training Program https://petmassage.com/calendar/, I’ll teach you what you need to know and how to do what you need to do.

You do not have to go it alone. As your mentor I’ll help you maintain your resolve. Whether it’s your business, marketing, or day-to-day professional practice, I am committed to support your canine massage journey with continuing guidance and encouragement. That’s my pledge for all our PetMassage graduates. And it is for as long as you are practicing canine massage.

The fruit is sweet. You’ve resolved for a magnificent calling. Let’s do this!

-Jonathan Rudinger, Founder and Instructor at The PetMassage Training and Research Institute