Grow Your Soul in January 2023

The new year unfolds before us like a blank canvas, filled with endless possibility. If you silence the turbulence of your hectic life you can hear a call from somewhere deep inside – “It’s a new year, it’s time for a new you” –  a primal craving to transform your life. But to enact an authentic metamorphosis you must connect to your inner goodness, the spark of the divine or universal that is pure and devoid of ego, that dwells inside every human soul.

Spiritual leaders teach that real growth begins with your thoughts, finds expression in your words and ultimately comes to fruition through your actions. 

International business woman, philanthropist and Goodnet Founder Shari Arison believes that true spiritual growth occurs when all of these stages of personal development are channeled towards good. “Remember, when you think good, speak good, and do good, you transform yourself inside; and by doing so, you transform the world. The next step is to apply this principle outward and allow the good inside of you to ripple out to the people around you. The effect of your goodness is felt by everyone you meet.”

At Goodnet, we have created a calendar of daily spiritual acts to help jump start your transformation. The acts are easy to do and will only take a few minutes of your day to complete. We have carefully selected a blend that will propel your thoughts, your speech and your actions in the direction of good. 

These small, simple acts can make a big difference. Get started today by downloading our Grow Your Soul Calendar for the month of January 2023. Ready, set….Grow!
Smile and make eye contact with people

• Looking someone in the eye together with a warm smile can immediately foster connection and dissipate loneliness. Sharing a smile and eye contact with a stranger is like a spark from your soul that can easily brighten up someone’s day.

• Forgive someone who wronged you
  Choose to forgive someone who has caused you pain. During the course of your life you have been hurt, leaving you with feelings of resentment, bitterness and anger. But if you hold on to those feelings you are prolonging your suffering. By embracing forgiveness you are choosing peace and spiritual well-being.

• Meditate
  Even a few minutes of meditation can bring a sense of calm, peace and balance that will boost your emotional well-being and overall health. Mindful meditation helps you  relax and cope with stress by refocusing your attention and teaches you how to stay balanced and calm.

• Write freeform in a journal
  When you journal every day you learn how to express your thoughts, ideas and dreams. Writing daily provides a concrete way to identify your needs and desires. Journaling can also reduce stress, improve sleep and boost your self-confidence and your I.Q. 

Visit someone who is lonely or isolated
When you pay a visit to someone who is socially isolated or lonely you can help by simply being there for them and letting them know that someone cares. It is always a great comfort to have someone who is willing to listen and provide encouragement and support. 

• Get outdoors! Spend time in nature
  Spending time in nature is good for the soul in so many ways. Your senses respond to the beauty and purity of being surrounded by the sights, sounds and smells of the great outdoors. Time in nature can make you feel better by lowering cortisol, improving concentration, and deepening your sense of connection to the earth and natural surroundings. 

1. Move your body through yoga

   Get your body moving! Yoga is a relaxing and meditative practice developed to help balance your body, mind, and spirit. Yoga is a great way to stretch, strengthen, build muscle, boost metabolism, improve circulation and live a happier, healthier life. 

• Watch stand up comedy and laugh out loud!
  Laughter heals. Find a funny comedian to watch online or go see a live stand-up comedy show and allow yourself to lighten up and stop taking yourself so seriously. Laughter will make your muscles feel less tense and will make you feel more joyful, relaxed and present. 

1. Read a book that nourishes your spirit
   Losing yourself in a great book can transport you to another time and place and can touch your soul in ways that will have a lasting impact. Not only can reading help you acquire new knowledge and information, but it can help you manage stress, improve your cognitive health and make you a healthier, happier, and more insightful person. 

• Tap into crystal energy
  Crystals can be conduits for the healing energy of the earth. Each crystal is said to have its own unique attributes and healing powers. Crystals emit positive, uplifting, energizing, and calming vibrations that help you achieve a more peaceful mind and a renewed state of being.  

• Write a holiday card and mail it
  It is so wonderful to receive an old fashioned holiday card via snail mail! Get a jumpstart on Valentines Day and send someone you care about a loving colorful card that is sure to make the recipient know just how loved they are. 

• List your positive traits
  It’s important to know your positive attributes in order to develop a healthy level of confidence and self-worth. Take a piece of paper and jot down as many positive qualities as you can. Sometimes, thinking of yourself in a positive way can be challenging, but once you get started, you will see that you have a lot of good things to say about yourself. 

1. Sing your heart out!
   Whether you belt out tunes while you are alone in the shower or plan a karaoke night with friends, singing can lift your mood and make you feel good! When you sing out loud your body releases endorphins and increases levels of oxytocin, making you feel happy and relaxed. Singing can also improve memory and increase concentration. 

1. Tend to your houseplants
   Houseplants can boost your productivity, concentration, and creativity, reduce stress and fatigue, clean indoor air by absorbing toxins, increasing humidity, and producing oxygen, add life to sterile spaces and reduce noise levels. It can be very therapeutic to care for your plants and nurture the growth of natural plant life inside of your home. 

• Pay someone a random compliment
  When you randomly pay someone a compliment you are creating a ripple effect of positivity. Giving compliments strengthens your interpersonal relationships, especially  when you compliment something meaningful rather than something that invites social comparison.

Call a friend you haven’t spoken to lately
Connecting with friends and family through phone calls and video chats can help you and your loved ones feel less alone or isolated. Humans are fundamentally social beings and thrive on their connections with others. You might be  underestimating how much your old friends will appreciate receiving a call from you out of the blue. 

• Offer to pay for someone’s meal
  It is surprising and fun to offer to pay for a random person’s meal or foot the bill for someone you know. The unexpectedness of this act is what makes it so special and positive. Remember that this is about making the offer. Not everyone will be comfortable with you paying for their meal, whether you know them or not, so don’t force it. 

1. Paint a rock and leave it where people will see it
   Decorate rocks with vibrant designs and inspiring messages and scatter them around your neighborhood to uplift the people who find them. The person who finds your surprise gift might connect with the message you’ve put out into the world. It’s a magical process where you can connect to another human being you have never met all through a simple rock.

• Plan a movie watch party online of a spiritual film
  Find a movie that makes you question the nature of things and broaden your understanding and organize an online watch party with friends. A spiritually rich movie touches your soul and by the time you finish watching, you find that you are in a more evolved state of consciousness than you were when you started watching it.  

• Send an inspiring article to a friend
  Sharing content with others about things that are inspiring to you is surprisingly powerful. People share content in order to define themselves to others and to help keep relationships strong. When you encounter an article that has sparked your imagination or touched your heart, hit the send button, and share it with the people in your life who will also appreciate the messages and insights. 

1. Clear your energy

2. Everything in this world is in a constant state of receiving and radiating energy and has its own unique vibration. This is also true for human beings. The frequency of energy can be light and rooted in love or dark and rooted in fear. Clearing your dense energy through an energy cleansing meditation will bring you clarity and calm.  

• Dance like nobody’s watching
  If you want to stay healthy and live a long life get up and dance! Dancing is a fantastic form of exercise and has many mental health benefits, including raising levels of the happy hormone, serotonin, and it also helps lower stress – this makes dancing a lot of fun! As a unique artistic expression of emotions, dance is also therapeutic and healing. 

• Offer to teach a skill to members of your community
  Reach out and teach a skill to people in your community. Teaching a skill strengthens your own learning, knowledge, and understanding while helping others to learn and succeed. In the process, you can gain confidence, improve your communication skills, strengthen relationships and enhance your leadership abilities.

• Send an inspirational quote to someone
  Positive quotes or words of encouragement can lift someone’s spirits and inspire them. Whether it’s your lifelong best friend or a casual acquaintance, taking a moment to deliver a positive and inspirational message can have a long-lasting effect on the well-being of both individuals.

• Express your appreciation to a family member
  You can often take for granted those who are closest to you. That’s why it can mean so much if you openly express your appreciation to a family member. Not only can expressions of gratitude strengthen your relationship with your family, but they can also promote optimism in your own life. If it’s been awhile since you’ve said thanks to your parents, or I love you to your daughter, now is the perfect time to tell them how you feel.

• Create a self-made gift for someone
  If you want to give a unique and one-of-a-kind gift, give something that you craft yourself. A self-made gift is very personal and meaningful to you and your loved ones. When you invest your time, effort and love into a gift, you will convey how much you care and you will clearly express just how precious your recipient is. 

• Create a list of things you cherish
  Sometimes you can forget to appreciate the small and big things that you cherish in your life. By making a list of the things you cherish you show your gratitude for the things that matter most. The list will also help you to enjoy and embrace these special things as they unfold in your daily life.  

• Talk to a stranger
  Talking to strangers is a great way to expand your horizons, deepen your understanding and make you a better person. Strangers are often surprisingly receptive to curious attempts to get to know them and find that the conversations are enjoyable, interesting and eye-opening. 

• Praise a colleague for a job well done
  Complimenting your coworkers shows them that they are recognized and appreciated, responding to our human need to feel respected. Complimenting a work colleague creates a positive atmosphere and helps build a community in your workplace where everyone feels accepted and supported. 

1. Focus on a positive affirmation
   Positive affirmations are phrases that you repeat to yourself to change your subconscious thoughts. These affirmations encourage you to visualize and believe the words you are saying. Over time, the affirmations replace negative beliefs or thoughts with positive thoughts, instilling confidence, positivity, and ambition to make positive changes in your life. 

• Do breathwork exercises
  Breathwork refers to a variety of breathing techniques and exercises that can be used to improve your physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual health especially by helping to cancel out their fight-or-flight response following stressful situations. Breathwork exists in many forms, including ancient practices and modern techniques developed by doctors and other practitioners.

We at Goodnet, hope that you will enjoy incorporating these acts into your daily routine and that they will serve as a bridge for you to create a mindset shift and to live a more spiritually enriched life. 

We truly believe that by choosing good your life will be transformed and that you will positively impact the lives of all those you come into contact with and ultimately will impart true change for good in the world.  

As Shari Arison says, “In expressing our goodwill and faith in our ability, we are creating a lasting and real change, for us and for future generations.”