Moving into a new year with the traditional calendar can feel overwhelming, exciting, cold (depending on where you live!), or maybe just like another day, week, or month. There’s often pressure to make resolutions, try new things, and leap into action after a holiday season that means different things to different people.
With my birthday at the end of January, I’ve always thought of my new year as starting then. In the business I’ve worked in for the past decade, the holidays tend to be a slower time as people use their PTO, travel to see family or take offline time to focus on their wellness and emotions around the end-of-year holidays. While goal-oriented, I’ve realized that I can’t always start something new at 100 percent on a specific date. This quieter time at the end of the year is a welcome opportunity to reflect on how my goals are progressing and where I want them to go. I even start this in the fall or coming out of the summer. I enjoy regularly checking in with myself throughout the year, not just on January 1st.
As I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned that having an on-ramp (and an off-ramp!) helps me make more stable and meaningful changes in life. In 2024, this meant reflecting on the changes I started in 2019, pre-pandemic, what I carried into 2020 and 2021, and what has worked for me from 2021 to now. These years have been pivotal for solidifying self-employment and creating a stable agency in Sunshine Silver Lining, which often feels like the center of my life.
In the spring of 2023, I realized I wanted more balance in my life. However, achieving balance takes time, and life has its own pace. Then, over 2024, work ramped up significantly as interest in mental health literacy and communications grew. In the spring, I took an offline trip to camp in the Mojave Desert, which offered a reset, yet afterward, it was full steam ahead. Things quieted down just before Thanksgiving, and I used that time to begin implementing changes that would lead to a new personal and professional schedule in 2025. A week in, I’m happy to report it’s working well so far.
Balance is an interesting concept. By definition, it means: "a condition in which different elements are equal or in the correct proportions." While I’m not sure life will ever be perfectly balanced, I can certainly strive to ensure that what I’m engaging in is balanced with the other important elements of my life. This approach helps me create lasting change and ensures that each chapter of my life builds on the last in a meaningful way.
Research supports this incremental approach to change. For example, the American Psychological Association highlights that setting small, achievable goals leads to more sustained progress over time compared to drastic changes. Similarly, a study published in the Journal of Behavioral Medicine found that individuals who focused on gradual habit formation were 80% more likely to maintain those habits after six months. This aligns with my experience of using an on-ramp to ease into significant life changes and also my experience of not making lasting change when I don't.
Reflecting on my journey thus far, I had a lot of fun during the 15 years I lived and worked in New York City’s entertainment industry, starting as a teen. Over the last decade, as I’ve focused on a healing journey back in Vermont, I’ve been fortunate to connect with wonderful, caring friends and community members. That said, I’m always striving for a calm and cozy life. By making small, intentional changes throughout 2024, I’m hopeful that the next chapter will bring greater stability and joy, whatever life sends my way.
Another thing I love is journalling, so I will leave you with some prompts that may support your thoughts around these topics in your own life:
How do you approach change? What updates have you made to your life over the last year, and what do you hope to achieve next?
Till next time...
xo s
Mojave Preserve and Death Valley, 2025
Comments