New Year, New Me? Bitch, please!

Real change begins when you decide, not when the calendar resets.

January is the time for New Year’s resolutions. Have you ever made one? Maybe you’ve made one every year. Were you able to achieve any of them? If you achieved them all—congratulations! That’s incredible. Maybe most of you have achieved one or two in the past… or none at all.

If you did achieve one or two, that’s incredible as well! If none at all? That is honestly most of us. We start things and then trail off. Another new year comes, we start things, and we trail off again. We can’t quite seem to pin it down and fully commit.

January feels like the perfect time to start something new. It’s the beginning of the year, and it fits the whole “new year, new me” theme. But does change really have to start in January? When we think about starting something now, we often slip into the “I’ll start Monday” mindset—like starting later makes it more official. Then Monday arrives… and we don’t start at all. Just like saying, “New Year, new me! New Year, here I come!” and the day comes and you don’t even begin. Or you do—but only for two weeks.

When that happens, the self-blame kicks in: “Of course I couldn’t do it. What made me think I could?” We blame our personality, our tendencies, our luck—or the lack of it.

We all have those moments when inspiration hits and we imagine how much better things could be. Healthier. Stronger. More energized. More full of life. These sparks of desire happen throughout the year—so why wait for a calendar date to begin? There’s a reason the thought came to you at that moment. It’s an invitation to act, not a reminder to postpone.

But postponing is easy, isn’t it? “I don’t want to do it now, so I’ll wait for the right time.” It’s the perfect excuse to avoid the discomfort of starting.

Maybe the idea comes to you in July or August. Do it. Maybe it hits you on a weekend or a random Wednesday. Start planning and take the first step now—or tomorrow—just enough time to get yourself set up. What matters most is taking the first step when the thought appears.

Commitment can feel scary. What if it doesn’t work out? What if you fail again? What if you add one more thing to the list of things you didn’t follow through on?

Ask yourself: what is the actual worst that can happen?
• Maybe you’ll blame yourself for stopping. That’s a sign something deeper needs attention—talk to someone about it.
• Maybe you’ll waste money on a gym membership you didn’t use. Maybe that gym just wasn’t right for you. Find another. Try a trainer. Explore until something clicks.
• Maybe you feel like you don’t have time. Then look at your schedule honestly. Are you truly out of time, or is “time” the excuse you use to avoid the discomfort of starting something new? If it’s the latter, that’s also worth talking about.

The point is: we will always find excuses. You are human. But if you act with intention—choose with intention—follow through with intention—the thing you’re trying to build will eventually become a habit. And one day you’ll look back and wonder why it ever felt so hard.

So, back to the heart of this article:
There is no “best time” to start anything except NOW—the moment the idea lands.

If you think, “I need to go to the gym,” great! Look up the gyms near you. Pick one. Try a few. Most have trial deals or short-term passes. Searching for them is your first step—so congratulations! Once you find a place you like, sign up and go. There’s nothing like the feeling of trying something new. I’ve learned to love that feeling—the spark of excitement in stepping into the unknown. And of course, the gym is just an example. You know what your “thing” is.

If your idea shows up right before the new year? Wonderful. Start. If you don’t start until February or March? That’s fine too. The calendar doesn’t matter.

What matters is that you begin at all.