A different way to think about the new year
Readtime: 2 minutes
Hello,
There’s a lot of pressure baked into today.
New year. New start. New you.
But today probably feels a lot like yesterday. Maybe a little more tired. Or a little more hungover.
You wake up as the same person, with the same responsibilities, the same thoughts, and the same questions following you into the new year. And somewhere in the background, the creeping awareness that Monday 5th January is coming, and with it, a return to work that you might not be ready for.
That feeling – the mix of pressure, fatigue, and maybe a little dissatisfaction – is more common than most of us admit.
For many capable, successful people, the discomfort at this time of year isn’t about not doing well enough. On paper, things look good. Sometimes great. You’ve made good decisions. You’ve worked hard. You’ve built a life and a career that “makes sense”.
And yet, there’s often a part of us that knows something is off.
And that’s uncomfortable, because it doesn’t give you an obvious problem to fix. It gives you a feeling you can keep ignoring. One you can drown out by staying busy, or telling yourself you should be grateful.
The new year amplifies that tension. It tempts you to believe the answer is a reset. A bold declaration. A reinvention.
But for most of us, meaningful change doesn’t start with tearing everything down.
It starts with learning from what you already know about yourself. From the moments when you felt most like yourself last year, and the moments you put up with because they were expected from you.
Most people I speak to don’t need a fresh start.
They need to stop betraying what they already know.
To do more of the things that energise them.
To stop tolerating things that drain them.
To admit that the question they’ve been avoiding isn’t going away this time.
If you want something genuinely useful to do over the next few days, don’t set goals yet.
Instead, ask yourself:
When did I feel most like myself last year?
What did I keep doing that I knew, deep down, wasn’t right anymore?
What do I want to think about properly this year?
Have a think and notice which ones make you feel slightly uncomfortable. That’s usually where the truth is.
There’s a space between carrying on exactly as you are and making a dramatic leap. For most of us, that’s the only place real change actually happens.
It’s a space I know well myself. And it’s the space I spend most of my time in with the people I work with. Thoughtful, capable people who aren’t chasing reinvention, but who know they can’t keep drifting on autopilot either.
There will be time this year for big plans and decisions.
But for today, it’s enough to be honest with yourself, and to take one small step towards a happier, more fulfilled you.
I hope this year gives you more of what you really want, and less of what you don’t.
I’d love you hear your take on the questions above. I read and reply to all emails.
Mostyn
P.S. If you’ve outgrown your role and don’t know what to do next, Atomic Ambition will help you to decide without fear of getting it wrong. We begin at the end of January.