~ Follow along and read all of Annie’s columns on Elephant here. 

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Manifesting: it’s such a trendy word now.

Manifesting means to make your dreams come true. After the year we had in 2020—it’s no wonder that we’re all focused on making dreams come true. That is a pretty automatic response after the nightmare we all have lived in.

All too often, we think that manifesting is reliant upon what we do. Yet, in our society that is so saturated in constantly doing, I would argue that manifesting is really about the power of the pause. In order to achieve our dreams, it is really more about what we stop doing than about what we start doing.

Take your resolutions, your dreams, and your goals. Write them down and stop. Take a look at your dreams and see what needs to stop in order to make them come true.

My dream, for as long as I can remember, was to be an author. I dreamed of being the next great novelist. I would write things here or there and they never went anywhere. I blamed it on my career, my busy life as a mom to two young children, and every circumstance I could think of.

If this was my dream, wouldn’t I do whatever it took to make it happen? I needed to take a really hard look at my life and figure out just what was holding me back.

The answer, and what I needed to push the pause button on, shocked me. It seemed like such a normal, everyday part of life. How could this innocent thing be what was keeping me from manifesting?

There was only one way to find out. I had to push pause.

Six years ago, I made the decision to push pause on my drinking for a while and see if and how it could change my life. Could simply participating in Dry January really make an impact on my dreams and desires?

That answer was a resounding yes.

It took the power of the pause from my drinking to see just how much it was taking from me and how it was holding me back. Dry January doesn’t need to be about just alcohol though. Maybe it isn’t alcohol that is holding you back from manifesting. The point of taking the pause, the break is that it allows you to become aware. To wake up and see what things in your life are draining your energy, your productivity, your self-worth, and all the resources you need in order to live your dreams.

It’s not that we’re not doing enough in our lives in order to manifest. It is that we are doing too much and it is keeping us from being able to manifest.

Allow January, and maybe even the entire year of 2021, to be about less—less drinking, fewer commitments, less stressing, less of the drudgery that has been the weight on your shoulders.

The benefits that came from my pause far surpassed my expectations. I never imagined that simply not doing something could transform my entire life. When I stopped drinking, making my dreams come true was a natural progression. It came from all the extra time, energy, and even self-confidence I had gained once I stopped.

My pause allowed me to start looking at not only how much I was drinking but why I was drinking and what benefits I thought it was bringing to me. The longer the pause went on, the more truth revealed itself to me.

The key to successfully taking a pause has to do with mindset. If we approach the experiment focused on what we will be missing out on and how hard it will be, we will be hard-pressed to find any benefits to it. Going in with a healthy curiosity and a desire to uncover what great things lie ahead works much better.

My Dry January has stretched out for over six years now. I never went back to drinking because once I started manifesting my dreams, I couldn’t imagine going back to the thing that had held me back for so long.

My life transformed in every way possible since that initial pause. I lost weight, started exercising more, and eating healthier. I started sleeping better and virtually eliminated the anxiety and depression I had struggled with for years. Those changes alone created all this space and energy in my life for manifesting my dreams. Yet, that was just the tip of the iceberg.

I also achieved my dream of becoming an author three times over. That pause from drinking led me to write books based on what I learned and share them with others who are struggling in the same ways I was. Had I not taken that pause, I wouldn’t have been able to achieve my dreams and, in turn, thousands of others would also not be manifesting their dreams either.

The power of the pause is exponential. Imagine the possibilities that await you when you allow yourself the power and freedom that comes with embracing less. Manifesting our dreams seldom only impacts us. How could the power of the pause and manifesting your dreams change lives? What will you do? When will you be ready to push pause?

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If you’re interested in pushing pause on alcohol and seeing what manifests, join us in The Live Alcohol Experiment that kicks off January 1st. It’s the perfect companion to Dry January. Join over 180,000 people who are already taking part in the life-changing 30-day experiment. Daily coaching and videos, a private community and more await you.