Committing to Change

What is it that makes us look at January as a blank slate? I feel like everyone looks at the new year through rose-colored glasses, suddenly empowered and invincible. Why? Because in all seriousness, January is the worst month of all. It's still dark more hours than it's light. It's cold and snowy (at least in the majority of the northern hemisphere), and at least around these parts, weather can change drastically from day to day. We just came off of 6 weeks of celebrating, and unless you somehow manage to con someone into giving you MLK or President's Day off, we've just entered the vast 5-month wasteland without holidays. January is terrible.

But I get it. Just like we relish taking a brand new toy out of its plastic, the flip of the calendar fills us with hope and promise. It hasn't been worn or tarnished or broken yet. We want to change all the things that were broken in the previous year, so we make resolutions and vow that this year will be different. But then we remember it's January, and that January sucks. So we give up.

Here's what I know:
- I made the 3 biggest changes in my life in September, May, and July. Not January.
- In order for it to stick, change has to come from a place of hurt, discomfort, or unhappiness. If you're ambivalent or comfortable, you'll always go back to the way it was before.
- Change is HARD. If you do it right, you will cry, you will laugh, and you will hurt, both physically and emotionally. But I will tell you that it's worth it.

No matter what you've resolved to this year - lose weight, start exercising, find a new job or switch careers entirely - you can do it. But before you do, ask yourself 2 things:
1. What unhappiness/discomfort am I fixing by making this change?
2. Is this really the right time to commit to that change?

Remember, you can change your life at any time, not just in January. YOU just have to be ready to commit fully to it.