A Low-Pressure Way to Prepare for the New Year

We’ve officially entered the season where most women fall into one of two camps.

Camp 1: “I must stay disciplined no matter what, December will not break me.”

Camp 2: “Forget it, I’ll deal with all of this in January.”

Neither camp is wrong or better.

They’re just both working from the same limited mindset.

They think their choices are:

Hold on tight or let everything go.

White-knuckle it or wave the white flag.

Two extremes.

Same all or nothing lens.

But there’s a third option that almost no one talks about.

The option where December isn’t a test of your willpower or a throwaway month.

Instead, it becomes an opportunity to reflect on what is and isn't working in your life, and to get clear about what you want for yourself in 2026.

Because most women enter the new year with a strong burst of motivation,

...but with a hastily set goal and vague plan to make it happen.

It's no wonder most resolutions fizzle out by February.

So here is the perspective shift I want to offer you today.

Instead of approaching the next four weeks with the same all or nothing attitude,

Treat them like a testing ground.

A low pressure laboratory.

A curiosity month.

A runway into the new year.

When you take the pressure off doing things the "right" way, you create space for awareness.

And awareness is the foundation of change.

You don’t need to set macro targets or do a perfect number of workouts this month.

You do not need to be on your "best" behavior.

But you can pay attention.

You can use December to notice things like:

• Which habits support you the most (and which ones sabotage you)

• What routines fall apart fastest when life gets full (and which ones do you genuinely miss when they're gone)

• What small actions help you feel grounded, and when do you rely on them most often

• What needs to shift, internally and externally, in order for you to reach your goals next year

So that by the time January rolls around, you already have clarity.

You know what matters.

You understand what you actually want (and what you don’t).

And you have a solid plan in place.

That means you start the new year prepared instead of scrambling.

Confident instead of overwhelmed.

Aligned instead of guessing.

And if you want some support with that process, I’m doing a brand new series inside The Messy Practice this month called The Resolution Runway.

Over the next three weeks I’ll help you get clear on:

• Why past resolutions fell apart

• What actually needs to shift for lasting change

• How to create a realistic plan you can stick to in 2026

The first live session is this Friday, December 5th at 1pm Eastern.

Click HERE to add the sessions to your calendar (or to join the group if you aren't already a member)

I’d love to see you there.