January Dreaming
It’s another new year and you are surrounded by talk of goals, habits and fresh starts. How are you feeling about this? Does that thought of getting a new notebook with fresh, crisp paper (or perhaps a blank screen) excite you, or does all of this seem like yet another burden to bear? I get you! Some years, I am so thrilled and dialed in, and I’ve got my colored gel pens, stickers, and vegan-leather-bound planner at my side, and other years, I don’t even know what day it is.
There are lots of ways to set yourself up for the new year, including doing nothing! Here are some ways that have worked for me:
Choose a word, any word. Pick a word that is going to mean something to you. Maybe it is something you want to remind yourself to do, like “laugh” or “breathe”. Maybe it is something you are working toward, like confidence. Put this word in multiple places where you will see it. Have some friends over or go to your local craft space and make a word bracelet.
Pick a theme song, or don’t pick just one song, make (or find) a playlist with songs that inspire you (or relax you, if that’s what you need this year). Play it when you need a little reminder or make a habit of playing it at a certain point in the day. My favorite time is 2pm, when my energy and brain power starts to wane. This year my song is Lizzo’s “Like a Girl”.
Choose a phrase or quote. This can be one phrase like “living the dream”, and when you find yourself deciding how to spend your time, or wondering what to do next, you can reflect on your theme. If you are a journaler, which I have yet to become, you can journal on your theme or quote. Maybe you would prefer a new quote every day. My favorite source of quotes is https://www.brainyquote.com/,where you can also select a quote of the day.
Live a value. Similar to choosing a word or phrase, you can choose a value to emphasize for the year. There are lots of sources of values lists, a quick internet search is all you need. Here’s a great list from Brene Brown.dare-to-lead-list-of-values.
Try a challenge. Challenges may help you establish a new habit, we’re all familiar with those that help you increase your steps or water intake. You can also come up with something fun or crazy. One year I really enjoyed following the suggestions in Gretchen Rubin’s book, “The Happiness Project”, which encourages you to explore a new challenge every month. That year I explored fun things like reviving my love of playing instruments, simplifying my wardrobe and learning how to say “no” when I was fully saturated. Some friends told me they got together and created Bingo cards with possible challenges for the year. I’m doing this next year for sure.
Do some reflection and planning. Yes, if this is the year for your gel pens, there are lots of great planners out there to guide you through it. My favorite is the Dragontree Dreambook and Planner, which leads you through the process with thoughtful questions in all aspects of life, and then helps you translate your thoughts into goals. I like that they offer a PDF version, which I mark up using Goodnotes.
Do nothing and just live. Maybe this isn’t the year for goal setting or planning ahead. Maybe no year is. If it doesn’t work for you, or the thought fills you with dread or pressure to perform, don’t do it!
Don’t let time steal your joy. Here I am writing this when there are just a few days left in January. You can start this process at any time, it does not have to be January 1st. There’s always the Lunar New Year in February, or your birthday, or any random day you choose. You are the master of your own time!