Happy New Year! Can you believe it’s already 2022? Since the start of covid, time has straddled this impossible duality of simultaneously speeding up to a reckless sprint and desperately throwing on the breaks to a screeching halt.
Confusing, right?
Yet, regardless of how we feel about time it still continues to march on. With each passing day, week, month, and year the clock continues to tick, reminding us that life is precious if not inherently fleeting.
And, with the start of a new year it can feel natural to pause, recharge, assess, and reset. How are we spending our time? Is it meaningful? Are we doing enough? For decades this holiday has been defined by celebration, reflection, and radical goalsetting. And while I’m all for improvement, striving, and trying new things – hence the very nature of this blog! – I think it’s important to keep two things at the forefront of our minds:
1.The dawning of a new year is not the only time we can make significant change in our lives, and
2. We aren’t broken. We don’t necessarily have to make a radical change just because that’s what the rest of the world is doing.
I feel like the first point is pretty self-explanatory. The new year is a great time to reflect and focus on resolutions if that’s something that motivates and gives you energy, but remember this isn’t the only time you can push yourself to grow, learn, and evolve. Change is constant, and fresh starts aren’t solely reserved for mornings, Mondays, or January 1st.
The second reminder may require a bit more explanation. With the popular culture and industry that has been built around this idea of “new year, new you” it can be tempting to step into January thinking you need to ambitiously make over every single area of your life. Gained a few pounds over the holidays? We’re going to start that fad diet ASAP. Feeling like you’ve been spending too much screen time on your devices? Things will change come January! Wanting to making a pivot or grow your career? New year, new you, new job: Bingo, bango, bongo.
With this approach, the litany of items you “need” to change can quickly escalate and become overwhelming, discouraging, and even paralyzing. For if there’s so much to improve, rework, and reimagine, then is there anything good about what currently exists? And, do we even truly want to make these changes, or do we feel compelled to do so because that’s what society tells us we should feel?
Look. I’m not saying goalsetting is wrong. I’m all for it. And I’m not even saying I don’t buy into the hype around New Year’s. A large part of me does. But sometimes the best thing we can do isn’t to push ourselves to change, but rather recognize all the various ways we’ve already grown and appreciate exactly where we’re currently at.
So, as you reflect and potentially goal set this year, take some time to consider these questions and reminders. What are you proud of from the year we’ve just finished? How have you witnessed growth, change, and progress in your own journey, whatever that may look like? What do you hope for in the year ahead? And how do you want to continue being – not become – an even better, more “you” version of your beautiful self?
Celebrate your progress. Revel in your growth. Embrace the journey.
You aren’t broken: You are exactly where you’re supposed to be.
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