I want to talk to you for a bit about setting yourself up for blazing into this new year with bravery and intention [our blaze a trail bandana may help!] I adore the celebration of the new year! It may well be my favorite holiday. I am going to share quotes for the new year, new year goals and a few of the things I do to celebrate and make the most out of this fresh start.
Quotes for the New Year #1
If you don’t know where you’re going, you will probably end up somewhere else.
Don’t let another day go by without clarity in your mind about what you want your life to look like. Get out a pen and paper and set some intentions! Define what things need a bit of a shift or radical change. Write and write and write, make big dreamy goals, make subtle notes to shift things that could have a real impact on your day to day.
Make your goals realistic but bold. THEN, decide what steps you need to take this year to get you down the road toward your goals.
Remember that you already have what it takes to make things happen! Chart the course and decide what comes first. It’s amazing when you think only about the goal, it may feel so far away and overwhelming, you may give up before you even start. BUT if you break it down into steps, you begin to see clearly how and what it will take to get there.
Quotes for the New Year #2
“Clean Purse, Clean Mind”
– mama earle
This wise saying is my mother’s. She tells me this when I am scatterbrained and struggling and can’t quite figure out what to do next. “Why don’t you clean out your purse, always good for a reset. You know, ‘clean purse, clean mind.’” and my god it’s true. Something happens as I go through and organize my bag that opens my brain to feel clear to investigate my unease. I take that philosophy into hyperdrive around the new year. I clean out drawers, closets and workout bags. Taking down and packing away the holiday ornaments and baubles allows me to choose all over again what I’m putting on my mantle and bookshelves.
I channel a bit of the Marie Kondo and ask if this object sparks joy in my life, but I also ask if it helps me move forward into the new year with strength and intention. Take a good look around at the art on your walls, does it make you feel good and strong? [Remember, bandanas can be inspirational wall art! Especially our Feel the Fear bandana] Are the humans in the photos in frames around your house mocking you or cheering you on? We all need a cheering section as we charge into the new year, so make sure your things are doing that for you. Habits are hard to break AND create, so make sure your surroundings are clear of bad juju and old meaningless clutter. Clear it out, clean it up and start fresh.
Quotes for the New Year #3
“Nothing Changes if Nothing Changes”
It’s resolution time. We have been laughing here at the ranch that we want to take on 2020 like Lizzo is our life coach [I mean, who doesn’t want to feel good as hell!]. At any given moment, I could come up with 25-73 things I’d like to do better in the new year. While it is natural to charge into January 1st with a big, long list of new habits, my brain and willpower go into tantrum mode when there are too many expectations all at once. I generally end up on the couch with my middle finger in the air, a pint of ice cream in my lap and a marathon of criminal minds on the television. Fingers crossed, I’m trying a new way this year: a rolling resolution.
What this means is I’m not starting everything on January 1st, I am going to add one thing week by week.
Most often with resolutions, we are wanting to change the way we feel. We want to feel stronger, more connected, and more present.
As you make your list of changes, I suggest taking them one by one. For example, I want to start my day with a bit of meditation and some flow of consciousness writing BEFORE I look at my phone. At present, I jump on the NY Times app and feel the immediate dread of the latest news. I’m gonna push dread off until lunchtime and not start each morning that way. I think this will make me feel more hopeful and positive.
The 1st of the year will mark the beginning of that goal, and I’ll follow through on it for a full week. Then, I’m going to check in to see if, in fact, it is making me feel better. It may need a tweak, I may need jumping jacks or something more lively than meditation (I’m really not at all a morning person). As I head into week two, I’m going to add in swimming three times a week. See? As the first goal is becoming more routine and getting settled in, you add the next one so there aren’t too many NEW things all at once.
Whatever you resolve, be patient and kind. If you miss a day, or backslide into an old habit, forgive yourself and start fresh again the next day. Just don’t stop trying.
Quotes for the New Year #4
Life punishes the vague wish and rewards the specific ask.
-tim ferriss
My final new year ritual is a ceremony for letting go. I get a metal bowl out of the kitchen and a book of matches. Take some time to sit with paper and pen and write down the things in your life – beliefs, habits, thoughts, patterns- that no longer serve the you that you are going to be in the new year. Be specific. Then burn them.
Here’s an example: I want to let go of my terrible habit of always turning to the side when I look in a mirror and push my stomach in, wishing it was flat. It is SO unhealthy to tell myself I’m not worthy of love because my stomach isn’t flat. Beyond unhealthy, it’s just STOOPID of me to think that way, so I’m burning that shit. I’m writing it down, lighting one end on fire and throwing it in the bowl.
I like to watch it burn all the way to ash, thanking it for its lesson and bidding it goodbye.
When we hold limiting beliefs in our heads, they can feel so large and powerful. This ceremony changes those limiting ideas into a physical form. You can watch it curl up and become small and fragile, eventually turning into specks of ash. This is a very powerful way to take back the reins on what you choose to honor as truth.
This is a good ritual for any time you feel bogged down with bullshit that isn’t serving you. The new year is an especially good time to clear out the brain space for new thoughts and actions.
(tip: you can burn one pesky thing as many times as you need until you really feel it has left your heart/mind.)
• • •
Happy New Year Y’all! I get misty-eyed with gratitude thinking over this past year. We have visited with y’all far and wide, we have made over 12,000 bandanas (that’s a lot of added bravery to the world!), we grew in numbers in the company, adding four rad humans to the ranks of the jenni earle team! we owe you, our gang of trailblazers, so much love and thanks!
ALL our BEST in the year to come.
be brave,
be authentic,
XO,
jenni earle