Not Just Another New Year Pep Talk✌🏽
Whether you believe in New Year goals/resolutions or not, I want to offer three things you might find helpful to journey in the next few days. One is enough, but it is even better if you have all three.
Gratitude: Where you find joy, gratitude is not far away. At any point in time, gratitude grounds you and helps you set a hopeful tone for the future. You can never go wrong with taking a moment to be grateful as a new year comes in. I wrote my 2023 recap as a gratitude list here if you're interested in reading it.
Reflection: As you know from the famous John Dewey quote, we don't learn from experience; we learn from reflecting on experience. The learning that comes from reflection helps us live with intention. This is another thing you can't go wrong with at any time, especially during the new year.
Intention: Imagine a kite without a string, drifting aimlessly with the wind - that's what being without intention is like. While there's only so much anyone can control, living each day (or year) with intention helps you make the most out of what comes your way, so you're not a random kite.
TLDR: Recommendations for your approach to the new year.
I don't agree with those who say the new year is just a change in the calendar. It's not possible to recreate the energy that comes with this season at any other time of the year. For me, I don't think I'll ever get over the excitement of writing a different number when I date things. It's a small but significant change that symbolizes a fresh start. I'll be real, too, January 1 - 31 doesn't automatically solve problems 😅. That's where intention comes in. The new year has a certain magic; drawing energy from it can make a big difference. Moreover, the most fulfilled people live with intention.
Whether it's a New Year resolution, a word for the year/month, a goal set in June or December, or a sense of purpose, intention gives direction to daily actions. For the new year however, here's my unsolicited advice: take advantage of the magic in this season to reflect, reset, and set intentions; you might be surprised.
Happy New Year!
I would be remiss if I didn't offer coaching as a space for all I've just written. I'm working with a few clients over the next few weeks to do just this - reflect on the past year and set intentions for the new one. Moreover, in 2023, I created a year-long accountability program for folks who wanted their resolutions/goals/intentions to last beyond February. The results have been fantastic; just read one of them here. I'm doing it again this year: December 2024 will roll around before we know it, so reply to this email or schedule a time to chat if this is something that sounds interesting to you.
