January.
Love it.
It’s my month to breathe and reassess.
In December I get all excited about the holidays. I hunker down in our home with our family and work my tail off to create memories, traditions, and special moments that I hope my kids will love and remember for years to come. I let my usual tendencies to keep track of paperwork, bills and email go by the wayside and I just really try to enjoy that holiday time in our sweet home. (If I could only find a way to get rid of all of the present stress, it would be an ideal break for me. Still working on that.)
But January.
Oh man do I feel ready to take on the year in January. It usually takes me a week or so to clean up all of the holiday residue (finding places for new items, donating old crap, cleaning up wrapping paper shards and glitter for days, and packing up the holiday décor) but after all of that…my home feels like a fresh clean slate. And the psychology behind that, for me, is that my spirit feels like I have a fresh clean slate as well…
(This is me feeling like I have a fresh clean slated spirit)
Sometimes I feel inclined to make resolutions, but mostly, it’s in my natural rhythm to just assess where I am, what I’ve done, and see how I’d like to redirect things that may have gone a bit awry in the last year. One of the most inherent ways I do that in January is by adjusting my spending habits.
I certainly have a fair amount of reeling in to do on the discretionary spending after the holidays and one of the first things I like to do to get a grip is go on a spending hiatus. I find that it’s surprisingly easy in January to take a break where I only spend money on food and essentials. NO DISCRETIONARY SPENDING. When I cut myself off entirely, it seems easier than just trying to cut back. Something about the hard line in the sand makes it work for me this time of year. It’s like the limit I’ve needed finally shown to me and it’s a great way for me to get a grip, save some cash, and garner a sense of self control at the beginning of the year.
It’s always a surprise to me to realize how much of my time and energy goes into the process of buying things. For me there’s the time spent online hemming and hawing, or driving around and searching the stores, the time spent opening boxes, breaking them down, recycling them, finding a new place for things; time spent in limbo undecided on my purchases, returning items (I'm a chronic returner - it's a problem), checking receipts, etc. It’s A LOT OF TIME. So what a gift at the beginning of the year to save that time, that money and that energy and put it towards making sure that I am on track with where I want my year to go.
So this year, I am going on spending hiatus for January (only food and essentials) and if all goes well, I really hope to push for February as well (I’ll keep you posted). I’ve heard of people who will take an entire year, dedicate it to essential spending only, and find that they’ve saved THOUSANDS of dollars to put towards something really meaningful that helps direct their life. This is my ultimate goal someday but I'm still in baby steps mode. January is a great start. Wish me luck! What do you do to take more control of your life in the new year?
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