Welcome, 2024!

Happy New Year! Happy Monday! Today marks the start of so many possibilities. It’s a new week, a new day, a new month and a new year. Amazing.

Do you do resolutions? Maybe you are in the “word of the year” camp? Or are you very much against setting intentions for a new year? I stopped resolutions years ago. I know that inevitably I will break it. I will eat the thing or drink the thing or buy the thing and then feel like a loser for a few days and give up. I did the Word of the Year for a few years and I liked it a lot. Unfortunately, the words didn’t always stick in my mind and I would, inevitably, like the resolution, forget. But at least with the word, I felt like it was more about HOW I would move forward and less about what I would do, so I could pick it up again later.

Now, however, I see my life as too multi-faceted to limit to a word.

So last year I started applying a framework that I often use with my staff at the start of a new school year. I ask myself, what do I want to Stop, to Start and to Continue. This is a framework used in business a lot, but I think it can be valuable for us to apply it in our lives at the start of the year, and several times throughout the year as well.

Stop

It may seem rather negative to begin with what we want to stop. That sounds remarkably like a resolution. I promise, it is not. Stop in this case is a series of small things we want to clear out of our lives. These are not habits we are breaking but rather, by stopping certain things, we are making space for the new (the things we will start) and allowing the things we will continue space to breathe, to expand, to grow.

In my life, I like to look at my personal, family and relationships and work lives. So, the things I will stop this year will affect at least one of those parts of my life.

In 2024, I intend to stop making excuses for why I can’t do something. I intend to stop prioritizing what is urgent over what is important and I will no longer stay in any room where I am disrespected.

By stopping certain things, there is suddenly room and time and energy for what is important. These are goals, and mistakes are encouraged as that is how we learn. Is there anything you want to stop in your life in 2024?

Start

I don’t know about you, but I am one of those people who loves to start something new. I love opening a new planner (I start mine in September so if you are a new calendar in January person, I am a tiny bit jealous of you today), starting a new hobby, going to new places, moving furniture to make rooms feel different.

I love a good start.

And now that we have determined what we are going to stop, we have space for those new starts. Without creating the space first, starting something new, which seems exciting at first, will only add to the weight of things we already carry. What seems like a good idea will become an added source of stress.

What will you start this year? Perhaps it is a creative project? A new job? Maybe you are tired of your single life and want to find love this year? Maybe you have decided that therapy might help you move your life forward? Maybe you want to start giving back to the world in a new way? Whatever you desire to start, know that you don’t have to start it all today. This is one of the problems with resolutions. We believe that if we don’t start on January 1 and continue every single day for the entire year, regardless of our changing seasons of life, that we have failed. I want you to know that you have NOT failed. You are trying and most people don’t even do that.

So choose something to start. And take small steps toward that goal. Your step may simply be to think about what you want to start.

In 2024, I am going to start some new creative projects. I am not ready to share the details of those yet, but I am excited for them. I also have some career-related things to start, but until I have some more clarity on those, I will not share those details.

What is something you want to start in your life this year?

Continue

Not everything in life is meant to be started or stopped. We can look at a new year and get stuck believing that we need to stop things or start them, when what we might need to do is simply to continue doing the good things we have been doing for a while now.

Maybe you have some good habits, and you want to continue them. Acknowledge them and celebrate those just as much as you are focusing on what to stop and start.

I started learning pottery in 2023. In the coming year, I intent to continue learning and practicing and enjoying the experience of learning this new art form.

I will continue writing in 2024, though my focus may shift a little. I will continue spending time growing my relationships and I will continue the habit of waking up early as I find it allows me to be more productive throughout the day.

What will you continue in 2024?

As we look ahead to 2024, I feel optimistic. I feel hopeful. I also just became very aware that the last time I wrote those words it was in my New Year’s message for 2020…and we all know how that turned out. But I am certain this year will be different. It will have some amazing highs. It will also come with heartbreaking lows, because this is life and we are human. I am prepared for both. And I am still hopeful.

For you, I wish a prosperous new year, filled with love, blessings of all sorts and strength for the days that are hard. Happy New Year, everyone!