Every January, there’s this unspoken pressure to arrive fully reinvented. New habits. New mindset. New calendar color-coding system. And normally, I’m kind of into that. I like a goal. I like a fresh start. But this year? Not so much. Part of it is hormonal. Part of it is emotional. And part of it is that life has been a little… heavy.
Over the holidays, our daughter was home from college for a long stretch and it was so nice to have her here. At the dinner table. On the couch. Enjoying our snacks. (So much Diet Coke, for those of you who KNOW.) And then suddenly, she had to go. We made the mistake of walking her all the way into the airport. Through security. To the point of no return. And even though I’ve already done the big, dramatic college goodbye once, this one hit harder. I hadn’t braced for it, because I thought I was fine. And then I wasn’t. Again.
Embracing Medium Energy
That kind of sadness has a way of flattening your motivation. So instead of chasing a brand-new version of myself, I’m aiming for medium. Medium energy. Medium expectations. Medium goals. Listen, medium doesn’t mean I don’t care. It means I care selectively. It means I’m paying attention to what actually feels good, useful, or grounding — and letting the rest go. And here’s the surprising thing: when you stop forcing improvement, you start noticing joy. For me, joy looks like reading instead of doom-scrolling. Joy looks like saying no to things that don’t fit. Joy looks like using your free will to do stuff that is wildly unnecessary, but deeply satisfying.
Sometimes that means setting a gentle goal and quietly moving toward it without announcing it to the world. Sometimes it means choosing rest. And sometimes it means spending your time tracking clipboards, or organizing something no one asked you to. This week on our podcast, we talk more about this along with giving some husband shout-outs, discussing a space podcast, and why I am getting in bed at 6:45pm sometimes.
A New Kind of Growth
Don’t forget that being gentle on yourself is allowed. Fun doesn’t have to be earned through productivity. Growth doesn’t always look like striving — sometimes it looks like being still. So I’m not reinventing myself this year. I’m not making promises I’ll resent by February. I’m not pretending everything is light when it’s not. I’m giving myself grace. I’m choosing medium. And I’m following what feels fun when I can.
Tell me what you are feeling as you go into 2026. Happy New Year, friends.
