New Year, Same Me.

It’s hard to avoid the ‘new year, new me’ rhetoric that seems to be everywhere at this time of year. Even when it isn’t as blatant as that - it’s the marketing campaigns with all those discount prices if you join a gym RIGHT NOW or kickstart a new habit TODAY.

I don’t believe that this is necessarily wrong… Per se. But I do think it can be pretty damaging.

There is always a place for transformation and growth. Of course, these things have an abundance of benefits underpinning them. Yet, when we consistently put pressure on ourselves to change, or do something new, or cut something out, the message at the core is that we aren’t good enough as we are.

So, it’s a hard balance, isn’t it? On one hand, I’d like to have a better handle on my finances so that I can save a certain chunk of money this year. I’d also love to spend less time on screen and more time with my book. Flip the other hand over, and I firmly believe that I am the happiest I’ve ever been - the most centred I have ever been - and so why rock the boat? Why change?

Does anyone else’s mind to and fro in such an unhelpful way?!

I think, where I’ve landed, is that I love who I am right now. I’m not sure I’ve ever been able to say that before. And I want to do more of the things that deepen that love.

That could be getting outside even more with Archie, exploring new walks. Or preparing my food in a more nutritional way to reduce my levels of tiredness and, therefore, have more energy to do whatever I’m called to. Or to work my way through my bookshelves so that I can escape to imaginary worlds and enrich my own creativity and thirst for writing.

I guess, it’s amping up the good stuff.

Because I really, really want to ease through this year maintaining the love and belief I have in myself. Setting a resolution to shift the very seeds that may have enabled this mindset to flourish seems… Well, kind of counterproductive.

I wonder - where do you sit with this?

Are you on the New Year, Same Me train too?