5 ways to move Slowly into the New Year with more Ease and less Overwhelm
Forget the ‘New Year, New Me’ mindset…
As the calendar flips to a new year, it’s easy to feel swept up in the whirlwind and expectation of resolutions, big goals, and the relentless pressure to ‘hit the ground running’ on January 1st. But what if, instead of diving headfirst into 2025, you eased into January as smoothly as the sun melts into the ocean on a warm summers evening? What if you moved slowly, with presence and aligned first with values, before productivity and ‘should’ do’s. What if this year, you try things differently - more aligned and more in service to YOU than ever before…!
Reminder: moving slowly into the new year is not about abandoning growth or ambition. It’s about prioritising your wellbeing, honoring your body, and creating sustainable changes that actually stick (and become a tick off the list by Dec 31st 2025 ;)
Why am I overwhelmed by New Years’ resolutions?
Unrealistic expectations leading to disappointment: Setting lofty goals can feel motivating at first but may lead to burnout if they’re too ambitious, AND feelings of failure (and lack of self confidence) when not reached.
External pressure to go-big-or-go-home: Social media and societal norms often glorify transformation and huge ‘positive’ change, making it easy to compare yourself to others’ seemingly exponential growth (and feel like you’re not ‘doing it right’).
All-or-nothing mindset: Believing you need to overhaul your life overnight can feel daunting and often leads to ‘nothing’ more so than anything (hey, procrastination).
When we start the year at a sprint, we risk losing sight of what truly matters right from the beginning: our well-being and the potency of small, integral change.
Cultivating more ease and less overwhelm can look like this…
Make it a point to prioritise rest and slow living
January doesn’t have to be about high energy and getting sh*t done right away….you only just finished the year (and the festive chaos)! Make sure you make space for actually restoring yourself first, before diving back in. Restoring not only physical energy (body) but your mental energy and spiritual connection (this could also be thought of as big picture/creative thinking and nature connection). Make it a daily commitment to do at least one nourishing thing amongst your other daily activities. Slow intentional living is a powerful way to ground yourself, and doing this right from the beginning is a great way to set the tone for a more grounded and nourished year ahead.
2. Create space for reflection
Before diving into the new year, take time to reflect and review the past one. Reflection helps you move forward with clarity and focus on what truly matters;
What worked well for you? And what didn’t?
What brought you joy? What can you celebrate?
What lessons did you learn?
3. Set intentions, not resolutions
Instead of focusing on rigid lofty goals, begin with intentions that reflect how you want to feel in the coming year. Then - create SMART goals that allow you to be specific and the (relevant) goals to be achieved in a time frame that is sustainable to you.
Example: Instead of “I need to lose 5kg” - an aligned intention may actually be “I want to feel strong and energised.” You might find that this leads to SMART goals that have nothing to do with weight and more to do with food attitudes and a change in movement practice.
4. Embrace small, sustainable steps
Start with one or two simple habits rather than a long list of changes. Consistency in small actions leads to lasting transformation without overwhelm. For example;
Try a daily 5-minute morning meditation instead of committing to a daily hour-long yoga, breath work and meditation session. Make sure to save a list of go-to online meditations that you might like to tap into each day (Insight Timer can be a useful platform for this).
Swap out one comfort food with a more nourishing food choice each week/month rather than overhauling your entire diet in one go.
5. Celebrate progress over perfection
Celebrate the small wins, no matter how insignificant they may seem. Keep a daily/weekly list of all the things you achieved - whether it drinking 2+ litres of water in a day, getting that thing done you’ve been putting off for ages, or eating breakfast slowly in the sunshine…what small thing can you celebrate today? Focusing on progress (no matter how big or small) helps you build momentum without the pressure of achieving perfection or big wins. Small steps are still steps forward.
Forget January 1st, just begin again
Let go of the idea that goals, intentions and changes must happen on January 1st, otherwise they won’t happen at all. Who ever said that you cannot commit to something, re-commit to something, begin, or begin again at any time of the day, week, month, year? Every breath is an opportunity to start again, to take another breath, to pause and re-evaluate. The calendar year is just that - a calendar year. Missed a day of meditation? No worries, tomorrow is another day. Reacted to the angry person infant of you? No problem, take a breath and a pause in dialogue, soften the shoulders, and respond next time instead. It’s o-k to begin again, as many times as you need to.
Fail-safe ways to stay aligned in 2025
Scheduling yourself a circuit-breaker and buffers in amongst your year is an amazing way to take pause, reset, rejuvenate and re-evaluate (and/or - to begin again without the need for a new calendar year!) while also motivating growth in new or accelerated directions.
Schedule in an annual refresh retreat to nourish the body and soul, re-evaluate where you’re at, create connection and foster wellbeing. Let us lead you into aligned living this year - take 4 days, or 2 nights with us. You can also DIY this, but here’s why we don’t recommend that…
Create non-negotiable ‘buffers’ around big meetings or events. This might look like 30min empty time slots before/after big meetings, or ‘empty’ weekends in between big social ones.
Don’t throw away your morning, lunch and afternoon tea breaks. These are gold. Science says we can only focus for max 90min at a time anyway before our brain needs a break. Take the break.
As you step into the new year, remember: growth doesn’t have to be rushed and grandiose to be impactful. By moving slowly and intentionally, you’ll create space for presence, wellbeing, and sustainable change that truly aligns with your values.
Commit to your slow & aligned 2025 below …
May 1st - 4th 2025
October 3rd - 6th 2025
April 25 - 27th 2025
October 10 - 12th 2025