People tend to get excited about the start of a new year. A new year is symbolic of a new beginning, which is why we have new year resolutions, plans, goals, or whatever you choose to call them. Many people spend the end of the year reflecting and planning exciting things for the new year. It is in this light that people say “new year, new me” to signify the fresh start that a new year brings.

But it goes without saying that we don’t just magically transform into new beings every January 1st. Hence, the “new year, new me” mantra has also been subject to a lot of derision. Of course, it’s a new year, but physically, you’re still the same old person.

Since we’re now in February, I thought it would be a good time to write this blog post, when the magic of the new year has died down and reality has set in. Personally, I was very optimistic about the new year, almost to a delusional point. But I always had it at the back of my mind that I wasn’t going to snap my fingers and immediately turn into a hyperproductive superwoman on January 1st – it’s a process.

On New Year’s Day, I joined a Twitter Space discussion titled “It’s Day 1: The First Day of the Rest of Our Lives”. It was convened by Truth Osumareton Egbe, the author of Becoming Intentional. Truth said something about editing your goals, which I found really practical and helpful – the idea that you can edit your goals to fit your reality and what is practical and achievable for you.

I also think it’s crucial to be kind to ourselves and realise that it’s okay to slip up every now and then. The important thing is that we are able to pick ourselves back up. It’s not like you have become a fictional new person and once you make one slip up, that’s the end – you’re back to your old self and there’s no saving you.

I like to think of the “new year, new me” mantra as an affirmation of your commitment to form new productive habits in the new year. It’s about making small, consistent steps to do better. And if you find that your goals are not in line with your current reality, you can always edit them.

It is fitting that I’m making this post when we’re already in the second month of 2024, because I want to emphasise that even if you slipped up in January, it’s not too late to pick yourself back up. You might not have started the year with a bang, but what’s stopping you right now?

For me, 2024 is the first year in which I create a to-do list every week based on my wider goals for the year. I no longer create random to-do lists based on what I think I ought to be doing. It’s now about making small, intentional steps to move me closer to my goals for the year.

But in the first two weeks of January, I was very bad at ticking off tasks on my to-do list, completing only a little over half of the tasks in each week. And that was because I wasn’t being very realistic with setting out my tasks. I had two big deadlines to meet in those weeks – one related to school and one related to work. So, necessarily, trying to meet those two deadlines took up almost all my time, which resulted in me neglecting many other tasks on my to-do list.

Does that mean that I’ve reverted to my old ways? No. It’s still new year, new me, because I’m making small, consistent steps to be more productive this year. Some days are better than others, but I’m not letting the bad days define me. And I plan to review and, if necessary, edit my goals every quarter. That way, I get a chance to review my goals four times this year, instead of only once at the end of the year.

At the end of the day, you may still be the same old person physically, but as long as you are making small, consistent steps to do better, then you are justified in saying “new year, new me”. Hopefully, this post encourages you to keep going and push past whatever slip-ups you might have had in January. That is certainly what I plan to do!

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