A New Year is a transformational time. It gives us the opportunity to reflect, refresh and simplify. We can push away the old energy of the past year and embrace the magic of a fresh New Year. 

While I don’t believe in resolutions or an overwhelming number of goals, I do believe that refreshing our rituals and routines is a great way to bring transformational change into our lives. And by simplifying, we’re able to appreciate the change that occurs in the silence.

Here are a few ways to start fresh:

1. Declutter that last little bit

Have you ever reached a point in your decluttering and then you’ve become stuck? That’s me. I have that last little bit of stuff that has to go. It’s worth money, so of course, it’s a matter of me stepping up, making time, and selling it. 

It’s the type of stuff I collected because at one time; I thought collecting things like dolls or pretty trinkets was a great idea. Looking back on it now, I realize it wasn’t such a great idea. But it does tell me something about where I was in that stage of life — I was unhappy and not thriving. 

Getting rid of that last bit of clutter will bring more simplicity and a breath of fresh air into your space. So let’s commit together to purging that last little bit of stuff.

2. Change up your exercise routine

I’m super excited to up my yoga game this year. I’d love to become an expert yogi and maybe even teach at some point. Yoga has helped me so much with mindfulness and overcoming my anxiety. It allows you to focus your mind on how your body is feeling and to target the areas that may need work. 

Let’s get our bodies moving and try something we haven’t before. Changing up my exercise routine was how I was able to lose 25 pounds during my divorce. I tried cycling, tennis, pilates and more to change things up for my body.

3. Get back into reading blogs

Remember when everyone said, “blogs are dead?” Well, this year, I’m passing on toxic social media and opting to read more blogs. 

I’ve spent too many torturous minutes locked in a mind game with Instagram. I’ll start by “looking for inspiration,” and an hour later I’ll be loathing every creative endeavour I do. No one needs that, and it’s not healthy.

This year, I’m reading more wellness and marketing blogs. Wellness for my happiness and marketing for my copywriting and blogging biz happiness.

Here are a few I’m enjoying:

Seth Godin

Ann Handley

Well Being and Other Stories by Danielle Copperman

4. Experiment with your style

Having a small capsule wardrobe can be a great thing, it helps reduce the number of decisions you make in a day and is a super bonus when packing. I used to be a serial over-packer — I’d end up with so many clothes in my suitcase, I wouldn’t even wear half of it. 

A trend I’ve noticed in the minimalist and simple living community is all these neutral, boxy, airy type garments. Well, I’ve got an issue with that. I can’t wear it. Boxy clothing does not suit my body type. I’m an hourglass/pear type of woman (think J.Lo and ScarJo), which means more fitted clothing suits me.

While I love my minimalist and clutter-free closet, I’m excited to try out some fun new things — whether it’s polka dots, more stripes, or a funky new pair of frames for my glasses. Bring on fashion creativity!

5. Embrace beauty

When you seek beauty in the unseen, the strange and the unexplainable happens. 

By taking time to pause, breathe and take in the beauty in our everyday lives, we create change. Beautiful and unexplainable soul-changing things happen. 

I’m not talking about going out and buying a dozen roses and staring at them for hours. What I am saying is to find beauty in your everyday life and embrace that. This weekend I was at a flat lay workshop hosted by Gooseberry Studios, and we had great fun embracing the beauty of creating a mess. Someone knocked a plant out of a pot and another spilled tea on a magazine.

It’s in these beautiful messes that life happens. So the next time you make a mess or a mistake, don’t see it that way. Instead, embrace the beauty in it and laugh.

6. Create a new ritual to help you thrive

Does afternoon tea count as a ritual? I can’t begin to tell you how much changing to tea from coffee has helped with my overall state of being. I find that coffee leaves me in a constant state of stress and overwhelm. Not to mention it exaggerates my anxiety. 

For me, learning more about tea and creating a ritual around it would be fun and healthy. 

There are so many different rituals you can create, and the opportunity for thriving is endless. If you don’t have any right now, you could consider a morning or evening routine, a mindfulness ritual, a gratitude practice, or maybe morning pages. 

This is your opportunity to thrive, so choose something new and exciting that will transform an area of your life from undesirable to exceptional.

What are you doing to refresh and simplify this year?