S5E28: Let go of the weight of last January’s goals
Full transcript:
It doesn’t need to be a mad scramble
Good morning and welcome to the LCP, the daily dose of language courage for people who love languages, and those who really don’t, but have to learn one anyway. And today’s episode is just a super quick reminder that just because it truly does feel like autumn right now, it doesn’t mean it has to be a frantic scramble to end of the year.
One of the things that I’ve noticed about this time of year is that, whether we do quarterly planning or not, as it gets a bit darker a bit earlier and the weather starts to change, with the first leaves turning yellow on the trees, I start feeling like I’m running out of time. And I know I’m not alone in this, not least because almost everyone I speak to says “I can’t believe it’s already October” in a slightly panicked voice almost every time I meet them. And I think that’s the problem, isn’t it, as soon as Christmas enters the shops again, in about August or September, it feels like the year’s already over and we cast our minds back to all the things we’d set as our New Year’s Resolutions in January, and we haven’t done them yet, and it can make us feel like we need to pick up the pace, throw ourselves into everything, and do a mad scramble to end of the year. And I just wanted to acknowledge this today, and ask, do we really need to pick up the pace? Do we really need to sprint to the end of the year?
All the things you set out to do in January, that you’re currently beating yourself up for not having done yet, are they still relevant? Are they still things you really, really want to have done? And if not, if the fact that you just haven’t done them is weighing you down, can you let them go? Can you decide, definitively, that you’re removing them from your list, and claim that headspace back?
Because it might be that the most fun, the most interesting, the most fulfilling way for you to end this year is nothing like you’d planned at the start of it. It might be that between January and now, things have really changed. You’ve really changed. And you don’t need old goals or expectations holding you back from embracing new ones. Let yourself go in whatever direction feels right now, follow the best guess from Present You, not Past You from January. You have so much more information to go on, and you know what you need to do to round off this year in a way that feels right.
Don’t let the pressure get to you, language learners. You’re doing okay, you still have just a bit less than a quarter of the year left, you still have so much time.
And if you want to really explore how you work best in the autumn and winter seasons, reflect on how things are going so far and set your goals or themes for the rest of the year, I’d love to invite you to join me for my Cosy and Compassionate Goal Setting and Productivity for Language Learners journaling workshop next Monday 16th October. It’s going to be a super relaxed and cosy way to look at how we’d like to round off the year and get some encouragement from likeminded creative, introspective and mission driven along the way. It's net Monday, on Zoom, 7-8:30pm UK time next Monday, tickets are £8 or just under $10, and you can get more information and book your place on the link in the shownotes for this episode, on my super colourful brand new website www.languageconfidenceproject.com, or in the link in my IG bio at @teawithemily. Bring a notebook and your favourite pens, bring a beverage, and let’s make the end of this year magical.
Have a wonderful Wednesday, and I will see you tomorrow.
If you would like more information about the Cosy and Compassionate Productivity Workshop, and to book tickets, visit https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/734781660727
I can’t wait to see you there!