Happy New Year!
The new year is here - are you ready for it?
Who am I kidding? Most of us aren’t ready. The last two years have left us all a bit unprepared for whatever is coming in the next one, and we just have to be okay with that. But that’s easier said than done, and the uncertainty can take a toll on our creativity.
So how do you approach the new year?
First, I would love to hear YOUR answers to that question. I want to know what worked for you in the past, and how you may be altering those habits and approaches to deal with the changes.
Are you someone who makes New Year’s resolutions?
Do you set goals by the week, month, or year? How do you track your progress?
Do you plan ahead for a year? Two years? Five years?
Has retirement changed how you approach a new year, and if so, how?
I’ve tried resolutions in the past. They haven’t worked for me, so I am trying to find other ways to plan for the coming year, and the year after, all while still dealing with the uncertainties of the current Covid issues - and with the ongoing day job situation, though I hope that will resolve itself in the near future.
The day job will continue into the new year, at least for a few weeks. When I started back in October I took on a general clean-up of some neglected processes, as well as a complete catchup of twelve months of daily work. In the three months since I have cleared out the neglected processes, and finished nine month’s worth of daily work.
That may sound like an impossible amount of progress (If nine month’s work can be done in three months, why do they need a full-time department moving forward?), but the truth is that I am only able to do this because I did it every month for more than 20 years.
I can see the completion of all the projects in the next few weeks, and I expect to be able to step back and let the new team move forward from a stable, up-to-date position. That wasn’t how things were when I retired the first time (or the second), but we are determined to do it right this time so they can be successful moving ahead.
So, knowing that the day job is going to not just take a back seat but actually not even be allowed in the car, what am I going to do?
I am not going to set unreasonable goals.
I am not going to try to do too many things at once.
I am not going to set myself up for failure.
I am going to take the new year one creative step at a time and give myself room to breathe and grow.
I am going to be flexible when the world throws me a curveball, as I know it will.
I am going to honor my creativity, and hold space for it, both in my physical world and in my mental world.
So no, I don’t have any hard-and-fast resolutions. I only have the intention to do better this year than in the past, to be a better version of myself in whatever way I can, and to allow time and space to create at least a little something every day.
How about you?