Stop Setting New Year's Goals (Do This Instead)
I have a love/hate relationship with this time of year, and beginning to see New Year's Resolutions that typically are waning by February and completely abandoned by March. I have tried almost everything under the sun, so I started looking at people whom I admire to see what they were doing.
Can I be honest with you? I've abandoned New Year's resolutions and even SMART goals. Not because I don't believe in growth—Jesus has called me to steward my gifts and continuously become who He's designed me to be. But I've discovered something remarkably more effective for creating lasting change in both life and business.
Here's what I created for myself after following their lead in life:
1. February 1st is my New Year's day.
I hated the pressure of ending the year, starting a new one, and starting new and improved habits all at once. What do I do? My business runs on a calendar year, but I set my goals to run from February 1 to January 31st.
This helps me to NOT dread January. January goes from being an EXTRA long month to a month where I can invest in re-launching myself, my business, and my team. Plus, February is a short month to set myself up for success.
Think about it—while everyone else is already giving up on their resolutions, you're just getting started with fresh energy and realistic expectations.
2. What works for you is the best!
I am tired of trying to shove myself into a box—it has never worked for me. Even a colleague the other day reflected after knowing me 10 years, "LB, why are you trying to do things the way others do them; it hasn't/doesn't/and won't work for you ~ BE YOU!" Thanks, Diana!
Here's what I learned: sustainable change happens when you design systems around your actual life, not someone else's Instagram highlight reel. Stop forcing yourself into productivity frameworks that drain your soul and start building rhythms that align with how God wired you.
3. Creative Absence is a game-changer for me and clients who have executed it well.
This is intentional time away from the business, daily, weekly, monthly, and quarterly. I focus more on quality of time rather than quantity of time. For example, I don't see coaching clients on the 5th week of the month because not every month has a 5th week.
I will start mapping out where I will go and what I will do with these days in January. I want to be sure of how I will invest these days rather than spend them. Creative absence isn't laziness—it's strategic renewal that prevents burnout and sparks innovation.
4. Change happens in relationship—NOT isolation.
I am building an amazing scaffolding of people around me who are healthy for me, the business, and my team. Who's cheering you on when you need cheering? Who's course correcting you when you need course correcting? I know who my people are and so do they!
This is where most goal-setting fails. We think willpower and motivation are enough, but sustainable transformation requires community. You need people who will walk with you through the messy middles, not just celebrate your highs.
The truth is, traditional goal-setting focuses on what you'll DO. But lasting change comes from who you're BECOMING. When you align your habits with your God-given identity and surround yourself with the right people, you stop relying on fleeting motivation and start living from authentic transformation.
What about you? Will you follow the crowd down the rabbit hole of New Year's Resolutions? Or will you courageously step out and try something new?
Stop chasing another year of abandoned goals. Start building a life and business that reflects who Christ has called you to be—not just what you think you should accomplish.
I hope these 4 shifts help you to the same level and even more so than they've helped me.