Recalibrate for 2022

New Year’s Day is one of my favourite times of the year. Whilst – yes: time is a construct and any day, not only January 1st, is a chance to reset – the momentum around New Year may be exactly what you need to motivate a refresh.

Here are some things I’m doing this year, to start 2022 and the new academic term off on the right foot.

Reflections on last year

Before moving into the New Year, it’s worth looking back on 2021.

What did you do that made you proud? When were your happiest moments? Was your lifestyle aligned with your goals and values?

What challenges did you face? What bad habits cropped up?

This is an opportunity for you to reflect on your achievements (no matter how big or small!) as well as the moments where you may have struggled. Perhaps you set yourself some specific goals last January, did you achieve them?

By identifying what worked for you and when, with whom and where you were happiest, you can choose what you want to bring more of into 2022.

Tie up loose ends

Whether you have thank-you notes to send after Christmas, or a subscription you’ve been intending to cancel for a while, this is the perfect opportunity to tick off any leftover To-Do’s on your list. Set aside an hour or two to plough through any administrative tasks that might have been pushed aside during the holidays.

Let go

As you go through your To-Do list, you may find some chores that seem to just never get done. Perhaps, if they always get pushed back, you need to ask yourself if it’s necessary or realistic that they will ever get done. Maybe it’s an email that now no longer seems relevant, maybe an item you wanted to buy that you no longer seem to need. Identify these tasks and allow yourself to cross them off, once and for all!

Re-set day

Whether your fresh-start feelings comes from fresh bed sheets or freshly painted nails, spend a couple of hours of your time to make your space and your self feel ready to welcome in the New Year.

Goal setting for the year ahead

Now you have reflected on the past year, what do you want 2022 to look like? How do you want to feel on the 31st of December when looking back over the year? Where will you be? What will you have achieved?

A whole year is a long time. And to set one hard-and-fast resolution rarely achieves the desired effect. But, by thinking broadly about whereabouts you want to be at the end of the year, you can work backwards and lift a couple of tangible goals that will take you a step closer your endgame.

Tip: If your new goals are an adjustment to your routine, don’t feel you need to achieve them all from January 1st – after all it is a holiday! Instead, I like to look towards the first Monday of the month or the start of the new term to start implementing the new goals, both to allow myself to get used to them and, well, to enjoy NYE…!

Kickstart challenge

In order to keep your goals relevant and not let them get lost in the time-frame of a year, why not try a mini challenge in the month of January. If you want to end the year waking up most days at 6am, why not spend one week of January where you challenge yourself to wake up every day at 8am? Or, if your goal is to be smarter with your finances, why not dub January a month of no online-shopping?

Check-in points

In a bid for accountability, use this time to identify some checkpoints throughout the year where you can assess your progress, re-evaluate your target and adjust/renew your goals as fit.

Tip: Why not add in some look-forward-to points as well? Pop a movie night with friends or an ice-skating date into your January calendar to give yourself something to look forward to in 2022. 🙂