Is February the New January?

It’s no secret that I’m a fan of the mantra “December is the new January.” Every December I encourage my blog readers and the women of See Jane Write to start setting and slaying their goals for the next year long before New Year’s Day. And every January I am ready to do ALL. THE. THINGS. But I never actually do.

I used to beat myself up about this but not anymore because I’ve come to realize that maybe February is the new January.

I’m not sure who used this slogan first, but I first read it in an email Alisha Nicole sent to her mailing list last February and it was such a breath a fresh air. Last January I tried to finish my book, publish a new blog post 5 days a week, pitch story ideas to publications every week, and run a special to increase See Jane Write membership. And this was on top of teaching full-time, freelancing part-time, meeting with coaching clients, creating content and events for See Jane Write members, training for a marathon, preparing for my TED Talk, and trying to be a decent wife.  I tried to do it all and ended up doing almost nothing.

Fortunately, this year I gave myself some grace. I still had a lot of goals for January 2019 but I kept in mind another important quote: “You can do it all but not all at once.”

January 2019 was great for me despite the fact that I didn’t accomplish all of my goals for the month. Instead of going full speed ahead into the new year I slowed down a bit and focused on self-care. As a result, I lost 8 pounds and gained a closer relationship with God. I read two books and planned my Spring Break vacation.

I still worked hard last month and even hosted a virtual summit but I didn’t blog as often as I wanted or stay consistent on social media. I didn’t send story pitches out or book new coaching clients. And I was OK with that. In fact, I decided about halfway through the month that was I wasn’t going to do these things because I was just fine with what I was already doing.

So if you didn’t check off all of your January goals, don’t sweat it. Just work on those goals this month (or even next month). Stop comparing yourself to other writers and bloggers and feeling like you’re behind. Stay in your lane, keep your eyes on your own paper or whatever other metaphor you need to repeat to remember that life is not a competition.

To see what I’m up to this month be sure to follow me on Instagram @seejavaciawrite.