December was a tough month for me. Nothing seriously bad happened but I was often overwhelmed, over-worked, over-tired, stressed out, and in a constant state of feeling behind.
All the while, I just wanted to enjoy everything I love about Christmas! And I did but it was a bit of a struggle.
And I was trying to reflect on all that had happened in 2022 and get my 2023 goals mapped out. And I did but it took longer than I expected.
#exhausted
Now January is in full swing and while I have just as much on my plate to juggle and just as many situations to navigate, I’m less stressed and overwhelmed. Part of that is simply due to the fact that the holiday hustle and bustle is behind us and the other part is because I’m approaching my days a little differently than I did in the last few months of last year. That is to say, while I’m busy, I’m being intentional about allowing myself some recovery time. There are several ways in which I want to do 2022 better than 2023 and recovery from what I did and what I allowed last year is part of that.
If the holidays or quarter 4 of 2022 stressed you out and you need some relief, I’m hoping that what I share in this post gives you some ideas for how you can recover too.
I Am Being Honest with Myself
It’s easy to think you’re being honest with yourself but it’s a whole other thing to actually be honest with yourself. For the past several months, I’ve been dealing with some relational & situational triggers that I haven’t known how to handle or fully process. That lack of control should have sent me to my knees in prayer but lack of control is a funny thing in my life – it makes vulnerability in my prayer life hard. So instead of running to Jesus with my emotional struggle, I shy away because it’s too difficult to work through. I run from the very thing I need the most. And this isn’t new – I constantly struggle with vulnerability, but that’s a topic for another blog post. Toward the end of December, I got more comfortable with the thought that my lack of control was triggering anxiety and anxiety was making me irritable and angry and I needed to bring it all to the feet of Jesus so He can help me deal with my emotions and the fact that I can’t control everything I want to control. This is so not easy and it’s a daily challenge BUT that first step of being honest and naming the issue has been freeing to say the least. It’s a step in the right direction.
I AM Setting realistic expectations
I really wanted to have my Planner Babe act together by January 1st. I wanted to have all my goals written, all my planners and journals set up, several blog posts queued, January IG posts scheduled, meal plans written, and workouts chosen, etc.
Yeah, most of that didn’t happen.
By Christmas, I was resigned to the fact that I couldn’t do it all and allowed myself to be okay with it. Now, it’s the second week of the year and while a small part of me reeeeeeeally wishes things had gone according to plan, the rest of me is cool with letting myself tackle things one by one as I can. I’m less stressed, I don’t feel as overwhelmed, and I’m not setting myself up for failure by biting off more than I can chew. It’s not the timeline I planned back in October but it actually feels good to do stuff without unnecessary pressure!
I AM Choosing easy wins
I mentioned this in my Tending List post last Tuesday but including really simple, easy wins on my goals list for January is such a game changer. Easy wins help me build momentum and give me that little shot of success that motivates me to work on the more complex projects. They feel super good and they’re sooooo satisfying to check off!
I love goal setting and planning and I will always do these things but the last few months have taught me that I need margin. Margin to feel, to respond, to change, to address, to think, to pause, to slow down, to say ‘no’, to say ‘yes’, to pray, to be grateful, and to worship. So even though I’m just as busy as ever, I’m going to give myself the margin to recover and build this year better than it was last year.
If you want to know more about how I set my 2023 goals, you can check out my goal setting course, Build a Better Year 2023!
Leave a Reply