End of January Encouragement

Hello loves!

Today is going to be a little bit of a shorter post. It's the final day of January-- which is absolutely wild-- and I feel like this is the time people fall into three groups when it comes to their 2024 goals:

The Goal Keepers, the Ones Still Finding Their Footing, and the Over-Ambitious Ones.

The Goal Keepers are the people who have been steadily maintaining their New Year's Resolutions.

From a step-by-step plan to a very dependable accountability partner, these people are going strong. Research now shows that it takes an average of 66 days/two months to really hammer in a new habit, which means these people are at the half-way point. And if that's you, then that's awesome!

Keep doing what you're doing because it's clearly working!

Next up are the Ones Still Finding Their Footing (which is where I honestly am).

These are the people who had their goals lined up, most likely had a plan or accountability partner, but haven't been as consistent at keeping up with their resolutions as the first group. Sometimes you succeed for a few days to maybe a week, but then fall off track the next day. It happens to us all, and there's nothing wrong with that. This group is still finding their footing because the tools and motivation are there, but the specifics still need to be hammered out.

Maybe your goal was to work-out a certain number of days, but you just can't wake up early enough before work and then you end up doing nothing at all. While you're trying to figure out a schedule and time that works best for you, it's understandable that your consistency might be off.

Don't sweat, be patient, and focus on finding the best fit for you.

The last group, the Over-Ambitious Ones, is a group I know very well.

This is the group that sees the New Year and all its vast potential, and make long, super intense lists of life-changing goals. Now, there's nothing wrong with wanting to work on some self-improvement, and big goals are great to have.

The problem-- and it's one I've run into for a long time-- is making these giant goals and acting like I'll wake up on January 1st with all the motivation or skill to conquer them. What usually happens is feeling overwhelmed by not knowing where to start and procrastinating until the whole month passes without having made any progress.

Instead of creating these mega-large goals for a single year, place the large goals in a "life goals" category. Then, break them down into what you can realistically conquer in a year. Then into a month. Then into a week. Pretty soon you'll have a manageable plan to start working away at your goal without getting overwhelmed or burnt out.

I think the real key to fulfilling our goals/resolutions/whatever you want to call them is patience. With all the tech and media around us, it feels like people are fulfilling their dreams literally overnight.

They aren't.

Behind the scenes of every "viral sensation" is mountains of hard work that isn't aesthetic or camera-ready. Nothing of true importance can be achieved with short-cuts. Think of any kid's show you've ever seen and I guarantee there's an episode in there about a main character trying to take the easy way to success, only for it to blow up in their face.

So stay on track at the pace that works for you. I know it's a cliche, but life isn't a race, it's a marathon. And in a marathon, you can't push your speed too far or else you won't have the endurance to continue on.

Take a deep breath. Look at how far you've personally come in your life alone. And celebrate every little victory you accomplish.

Love y'all!

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. —Galatians 6:9