January is the worst time to make resolutions

Wait Until Spring

I am going to be the contrarian today. Don’t make any New Year resolutions or set any goals. Wait.

Wait until spring, when the natural rhythms and cycles are in your favor with the fresh energy of growth and change. If you are struggling with seasonal affective disorder (SAD), or the winter blues, making New Year resolutions is a sure formula for failure and frustration.

The beginning of January, as we head into the dark days of winter in the northern hemisphere, may be the worst possible time to attempt wholesale changes of habits or behaviors. Health clubs, gyms and weight loss clinics do a great business this time of year, knowing that most of their earnest new members will last only a few months or weeks.

Lighten Up on Yourself

If you are struggling with low energy, feel fatigued, need more sleep, feel mentally foggy or depressed, treat yourself to the best New Year’s gift money can’t buy: Lighten up. You don’t need to change habits now just because the calendar changed.

I’m not advising you give up and hibernate for the rest of winter. I’m not suggesting you don’t evaluate the past year and think about what you’d like to be different this coming year. I’m not saying you should abandon goal setting.

Timing is Everything

I’m saying that people with SAD and difficult cases of the winter blues need to be realistic about when is the best time to attempt life-changing habits and behaviors.

My primary goal for the people who join my Winter Blues Coaching classes will be to get them into the habit of using a light therapy box, in itself not a small habit to establish when you’re in the throes of even a mild seasonal depression.

Three Key Words

I like Chris Brogan’s habit of selecting three key words that will guide his goal setting, planning and decisions throughout the coming year. That’s about the best advice I’ve heard for establishing personal change. Taking time now for self-reflection, redirection and planning can build a solid foundation for larger, more energetic actions and changes come spring.

It’s not that you are being lazy, unfocused or negligent. Try a new approach.

Honor Your Natural Rhythm

Rather than react to an artificial stimulus – the turning over of a page in the calendar – decide to pay attention to and honor your personal rhythm and how you interact with the natural planetary cycles.

My birthday is in the middle of January, and that event holds much more significance for me than New Years. It’s also a turning point, one of my astrology friends tells me, in my personal energy cycle for the year. So it’s a naturally contemplative time to focus on what I want to be different in my life. But I don’t attempt major changes yet.

Align with the Spring Cycle

Spring is the perfect time, in my humble opinion, to embark on personal goals and changes. We naturally want to change our eating habits to include more fresh foods, exercising is appealing and modifying other habits doesn’t seem like such a chore. Everything, from the increasing sunlight and longer days to the energy of budding plants, is aligned with our desire to change.

So don’t beat yourself up if you feel resistance to making New Year’s resolutions. Drop all the “shoulds” and guilt. Lighten up: Get a lightbox and start to use it.

Listen to your internal rhythm and pledge to take care of yourself in the middle of winter as we head into the darkest days. You will be rewarded come spring.

Related posts:

1. Sunless Days Mean January Struggles
2. How to Make Tough Decisions When You’re Overwhelmed by Winter
3. Why You Need a Daily Hit of Bright Light
4. SAD STRUGGLES: When your brain goes on strike
5. Cloudy With a Chance of Depression

Tagged as: energy, goals, have tos, natural rhythms, New Year resolutions, oughts, SAD, shoulds, spring, winter blues, winter depression