Let’s talk about a kindler, gentler way of entering the New Year

Here’s the deal – it’s 2025 and everyone does the whole “New Year, new me” routine and I can’t deal anymore. At least not in a Type A, hustle, conquer the world and your goals, kind of way. What I’m saying here is, I aim low these days. It has taken years of humbling to acknowledge that setting a long list of lofty resolutions at the beginning of the year usually doesn’t work in my favor.

Once more, winter is a time of rest for nature. Maybe we should consider that we too are in need of rest during this hibernation season? Perhaps a gentler approach to a new year stretched out before us, is better for building lasting change?

Since I’ve begun viewing this winter season as a time of rest, I find I’m more successful at making incremental change by choosing a word that becomes a guide for my year. Winter is my time to ponder what that looks like. I rest and move slowly toward new habits. Instead of making a rigid list of tasks that I jump into the New Year with, (that was usually way too much for me to keep up with), I follow my own slower process to improving habits and reaching goals.

For instance, this year, my word is nurture. When I thought about what I want this year to be for me, I kept coming back to the same few ideas. This year needs to be the foundation for what comes in the next few years. The word nurture has a few applications related to each of my intentions. And most importantly, what I nurture this year has major implications for my long-term goals and dreams.

If you’re looking for a softer way to dive into your year and your goals and intentions, here’s what the process looks like:

1. Develop (or pull out) that list of long-term goals (the vision board type items).

2. Create a list of “intentions” for the year with connections to your long-term goals (or not). A connection to the long-term goal might look like paying down your remaining debt and beefing up your savings so that you can open that bookstore/café you’ve been dreaming about. You know the bookstore is a few years out – but what happens this year is critical for what comes next. What are some intentions you can set for yourself to help nurture (see there’s my word again) that goal?

3. The intentions for the year don’t need a connection to the long-term. But if you go that route, think about habits you want to build (or get rid of) so you’re ready for those next steps in the coming years.

4. Looking at both lists, are there common themes in the steps you need to climb, to get there? I have found that to be true. The habits I want to create and change usually have a similar thread that connects them. In my case, looking at the long term goals and short-term intentions, I brainstormed words that summarized both – paying more attention to the short-term intentions.

5. After brainstorming, I did some image searches on Pinterest. As a visual person, this helped inspire me further, which helped me narrow down 12 words to . . . nurture.

6. Once I had the word, I sketched out how they are connected to the intentions. And now I’m I’ve got my word and the things I want to work on this year connected to that word.

In the next week or so, I’ll probably come up with some images that I’ll keep near my writing desk and my 9-5 desk, that inspire and remind me of what lies ahead.

I start small. It’s okay to start small and build up. It’s okay to rest your way into a spring, summer, and autumn with a calm nervous system and new habits you’ve been working on for days, weeks, and months . . . slowly.

Here are a few things that might be helpful for building habits in a non-hustling, hibernating your way into reaching your goals, kind of way.

– Finch – A free app/game that gives you points to help you establish goals and habits. There are purchases within the app but the basic version is cute.

– Insight Timer – A free meditation app that can help with sleep, mindfulness, etc.

– Headspace – I believe Headspace requires a subscription – but it has been very helpful for me

– Additional resource for habit-building apps

– If you’re the type that needs to work on paper, here’s some habit tracking templates. You can also find some for purchase on Etsy.

Here’s to a beautiful 2025.