September is around the corner, and many of us consider it the beginning of a new phase. This is when school starts again, the weather changes–at least where I live– and we begin to reassess where we are.

You may wonder, where am I at this point in my life? What have I sown and what do I wish to reap?

And these thoughts may also bring feelings of not having accomplished as much as you wished. We all like to accomplish things, but in the end, it’s not how much you do but your intention and the quality of your achievements, no matter how small.

In addition, there is another level, and that is how we ourselves have been changed by our thoughts and actions.If you have become stronger, more aware, truer to yourself, then even if you’ve ‘failed’ at what you set out to do, or haven’t succeeded as much as you wanted, you’ve made a shift in your consciousness, in your very life itself.

Have you noticed any incremental shifts?

Change often happens under the surface before it makes itself known.

If a tiny shoot has appeared, wait with positive expectation and keep on going. And if the shoot has not yet appeared, it will in time.Think about what has worked. Jot down anything you feel good about having done, or any steps you have taken no matter how small. How are you different now than you were a year ago? What have you learned? How have you coped with challenges?

When you make an effort to change in a positive way, have the courage to keep on going and not give up, you will have a positive impact on those around you.When you raise yourself up, you contribute to lifting others, and to the healing of the world.

“Every challenge you encounter in life is a fork in the road. You have the choice to choose which way to go – backward, forward, breakdown or breakthrough.”

–Ifeanyi Enoch Onuoha, Overcoming the Challenges of Life