At the strike of midnight and with a big ball drop, all of a sudden we find ourselves in 2009. People talk about goals, resolutions, themes, mantras, and what's on the agenda for the New Year. Everyone is ready for a fresh start and the chance to put 2008 behind them. Yet, one of the mistakes many people make is that they do not bring full completion to the past year. Like holding a grudge or dragging emotional baggage behind you, it weighs you down and prevents you from truly creating what you most want in the present and the future.

You just can't move confidently and strongly forward to an inspiring future with one foot still stuck in the past.

You might not feel like you have one foot stuck in the past. Perhaps there is not one big overriding open issue or circumstance on your mind. Still, if you have some lingering negative emotions about something, an unconscious limiting belief floating around your head, or just simply have some remaining energetic tie to the past year, you are not fully free to move forward.

For instance, if you are still feeling a twinge about being passed over for a promotion last year, chances are that twinge is at play already standing in the way of you getting one this year. If you are harboring resentment over a job layoff that powerful emotion is holding you back from the next opportunity. It's not only the negatively charged stuff that holds you back either. If you are longing for the "good ole days" whether that be 2008 or ten years ago, staying stuck in some fantasy about the past is also preventing you from moving forward to something good in the present.

Every year I have a ritual I go through to bring completion to the old and welcome in the new. You can create your own ritual - journaling, a cleansing fire, or any activity that allows you to release the old and then invite in the new. Sharon Wilson shares one such ritual in "Are You an Entrepreneur That is Ready to Face the New Year?":

The best way to start with this is at a foundational energy level.

First of all, forgive yourself for anything that happened in 2008. Just really forgive yourself – unilaterally – it doesn’t matter what you did or what you said, what you didn’t do or what you didn’t say – you’ve got to start out with a clean slate.

Create some kind of ceremony or ritual around this – some kind of event that can be a true forgiveness experience for yourself.

* Write down all the things that you regret from the past year – your coulda shoulda wouldas – everything.
* Then, take that piece of paper and burn it, bury it, or rip it up!
* Do something that makes it very tangible to you that you’re releasing the previous year.

As I read Pam Slim's "Make way for a killer 2009: Release any lingering agony from 2008" I was reminded how impact filled out emotions can be. In business we often try to deny or repress our emotion, but they fuel our energy and can run the show consciously or unconsciously.

I was wallowing a bit myself in these past months, trying really hard to focus on the tremendous opportunities ahead, but at the same time feeling a bit anxious and gun-shy given the nature of 2008.

All of my training as a coach tells me that any external circumstances (like a down cycle in the economy) do not impact my success or failure: it is only my thoughts about the situation that drive my reality.

This very true perspective can have some unfortunate side-effects, especially for the overzealous Law-of- Attraction-or-Else fans: you can start to beat yourself up for not being hyper-perky and positive.

Here is the rub: unless you release some of the emotion that bottled up during your rough and tumble parts of the year, clear thinking and focused intentions might be a bit difficult.

Pam then goes on to give readers a step by step way to excavate those emotions and release them so you can have a positive and productive 2009.

Recently Mata talked about the need to resolve to leave things behind that belong there:

I think we all carry stuff around with us that has no business in our spiritual backpack. Perhaps it is worry -- worry over those things that we cannot control. If we can't control the outcome, what good does our worry do? Take a breath. Set down some worry on the far side of 2008 and try not to carry it forward into 2009 with you. Leave it on the shore of the river.

My worry can sometimes take the shape of keeping me from acting. That of course makes it possible for me to worry even more. Those steps I could take wait for me to stop worrying long enough to take them already!

The New Year is young and the possibilities are truly endless. So, what do you need to take out of your backpack? What emotions, beliefs, or attachments do you need to surrender in order to lighten your load and free you up to create the career, business, life of your dreams in 2009? Resist the temptation to rush headlong into the rat race and take some time to truly bring completion to the last year. You'll feel lighter AND more positive and productive.

Paula Gregorowicz, owner of The Paula G. Company, offers life coaching for women to help you gain the clarity, confidence, and courage you need to have success on your own terms. Get the free eCourse "The 5 Crucial C's You Need to Succeed in Life" at her website

Get the latest word on personal finances from an LGBT perspective and Paula's practical coach approach to the topic at Queercents http://www.queercents.com.