Take your time getting dressed this morning; read a book, make yourself some breakfast. The world can wait.” – Whitney Nobis
“Once she stopped rushing through life, she was amazed how much more life she had time for.” – Unknown
Happy New Years to you all. May 2025 be a time to create the visions that will bring you joy and fulfillment.
As I get older (and hopefully wiser), I’ve realized that the New Year’s traditions of goal setting often bring a great deal of pressure. For some people, this pressure can serve as motivation—an opportunity for a fresh start and a chance to pursue things that will bring joy over the next 365 days. But for others, it can bring about setbacks or disappointments.
For years, I would start the new year with a rigorous diet, eliminating sugars, dairy, and carbs. However, within two weeks, I would inevitably break the rules, which would lead to a downward spiral back to unhealthy eating habits. At work, I would get up earlier to get more done, stay ahead of the game with longer days, and be exhausted by months end by adding more “to-dos” to my already busy day.
According to CNN “The practice of making New Year’s resolutions may be done with optimistic intent. But usually by the second month of the year, about 64% of those self-improvement hopefuls abandon their goals, perhaps leaving some to wonder, “Why do we even have this tradition in the first place?” I have come to see that in my own goal setting patterns.
What would it take to shift our mindset toward easing into our yearly objectives? Better yet, what if we removed the word “goals” from our vocabulary and replaced it with softer, more mindful terms like “visions,” “dreams,” or “joys”? What if we took our ” goals ” list and added one or two things we would like to do this year, taking the pressure off the need for perfection?
Let’s take a moment. Allow yourself to sit comfortably in a chair, both feet on the ground, back straight and eyes closed. Breathe slowly in and exhale out through your mouth a few times, sinking into your own heart space with each intentional breath. Allow your mind to become quieter and your body to slow down. Ask yourself…how would it feel to start slowly into the new year? Now check in to listen to your intuitive response. Breathe. Ask yourself what would happen if you didn’t set goals, objectives, and deadlines? Breathe and notice your body and how it reacts. Do you notice your shoulders feeling more relaxed? Can you feel your mind letting go to a construct that may no longer work for you?
Now ask yourself…
What does “easing into it” mean to you? What excites you about this year? What would bring more joy into your week, month, or year? And how can you obtain this in small, simple, and easy steps? Is it about adding a new vegetable to your dinner plate instead of overhauling your diet? Is it about meditating 5 minutes a day for a month to start a new habit of regulating your nervous system and then adding more time next month? What if you shift your mindset from an all-or-nothing approach to a more gentle, mindful, and compassionate way of thinking?
Remember, we continue to learn and grow from our experiences. It is part of our humanness.
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