Happy 2021 everyone. I’m back from “taking a bit of a break” and really excited to begin another great year of blogging. I’ve been thinking about the ideas for this particular post for a few weeks now. The inspiration for what you are about to read came while listening to an episode of one of my favorite podcasts, Cortex. This episode included a very powerful discussion between both hosts, Myke Hurley and CGP Grey. They were talking about a topic that is very close to them and, over the past 4 years, has become very close to me; Yearly Themes. Their discussion got me thinking about my 2020 theme, the Year of Peace and what my new theme(s) might be moving into this new year; 2021. Here's what I'm thinking so far...

My main theme for 2021 will be “The Year of Gain...”

Before I go on, I’d like to refer my reader to the Theme System Journal web site that Myke Hurley put together. It will serve as a nice reference as you read the rest of this post.

One aspect/section of the Theme System Journal is daily themes. These are the things that you reflect on...get ready for it...daily...in an effort to think more clearly as well as deeply about your main theme. I do this at the same time every day, right around 8pm, as a part of my “wind down” routine. I'm pretty sure I'll be able to keep my daily themes from the previous this Year of Peace because I want the Year of Gain to translate to insights, perspectives, and understandings I am “gaining” from my daily themes which include...

Creation-this will come mainly from my writing and subsequent blog posts.

Marriage-things I’m doing daily to be a better husband.

Physical activity-I am currently walking, running, and doing yoga.

Mental activity-this would include my thought processes and decision making...my inner dialogue.

Spiritual activity-this would include mindfulness (breathing) as well as (guided) meditation.

I think that the Journal Pages, another key aspect/section of the Theme System Journal will too, stay the same. My current lenses are (Happy, Blogging, Forward). I could use these pages to reflect on insights, perspectives, and understandings that relate to what I’m happy about, what I did related to blogging, and what I am looking forward to. Or...I could use insight, perspective, and understanding as the set of lenses to look back at the day because that's what I am hoping to "gain." I will have to experiment with each of these ideas as I start journaling.

One system that I set up, earlier this year, to help me remain mindful of my yearly theme throughout the day, is a series of reminders via the DUE app. Most people use this app to remind themselves to take out the trash or bring out the recycling. I have a few reminders like this in the app. The great thing about DUE is that it will continue to “nag” you until you tell it that the reminder has been taken care of. Another great feature is that you can create recurring reminders. Because of these cool features, I decided to try something different with this app.

I created a series of questions, using text and emojis, in an effort to keep my mind seamlessly focused on my yearly theme. For example, at a certain time during the day, the app will send me a reminder, on my Apple Watch that simply asks, “Right effort?” Meaning...in that moment...am I exhibiting the right amount of effort with regards to what is happening? The questions are not meant to be answered literally, they are rhetorical, a way to re-direct me towards what I feel is important to me. These mindful reminders “echo” my own take on the Buddhist 8-fold Path. It is my belief that, as I think about my new theme, these reminders will help me, throughout the day, “gain” insight, perspective, and understanding with regards to what is happening; in the moment.

That’s it for now. I will come back to this topic as I continue to hit milestone moments in the Theme System Journal—using those moments to reflect on how things are going.