Don't Shy Away from Setbacks

Happy New Year!

I can't sugarcoat it: last year was rough. I know I'm not alone in saying it pushed me to my limits and almost took me out. But here we are, ready and able to face more uncertain moments in our new journey around the sun. I'm grateful.

Every year, when the clock strikes midnight on January 1st, I feel a familiar mix of excitement and anxiety in my chest. It's officially "new year, new me" season!

It's a feeling I've become accustomed to. It's a silent whisper urging me to act, to seize the moment and dive into the year with both feet. Even though it's often mixed with a bit of fear, this whisper always calls for newness, growth, and transformation.

But venturing into that newness – whether it's a new job, a new hobby, a new city, or new relationships – means we must step out of our comfort zones.

Luckily, optimism, motivation, and momentum are in the air around this time, making it easier to make the leaps.

But, what happens when things start to shake up? When fear, lack of motivation, and setbacks come knocking?

By mid-February, communal momentum has usually died down, and new routines and habits begin to feel heavy. This heaviness is the reason why gyms clear out and progress toward new goals gets abandoned.

Keeping your momentum to continue strutting through the new and unknown is never easy. It requires consistent leaps of faith. Trust falls with life if you will.

You will face some kind of setback. You or someone you love will get sick. You might lose a job unexpectedly, face financial difficulties, or face failures in your projects. Relationships may hit rough patches, or you might find yourself struggling with self-doubt or anxiety. In short, nothing will go according to your perfect, well-thought-out plans. We are better off once we accept this.

I've gained so much respect for those among us who accept this truth, embrace it, and roll with all of the punches. I aspire to do the same -- to keep that same energy through adversity, uncertainty, and unexpected ups and downs.

2024 will be different for you and me. Let's be the kind of people who surrender to the unknown and continue to strive toward our goals. Before the routines of life pull us back into the comfort of what we're used to, and before the communal 'new year, new me' energy fades, let's amplify that nudge urging us to do better and be better.

It's Day 4 of 2024, and we have 362 days ahead of us, a blank canvas waiting to be painted with our daily choices, habits, and experiences. When December 31st, 2024, comes, what will you be able to say you committed to and took steps towards? I mean, those 362 days will go by anyway, right?