How To Look At The Year Ahead With A Positive Frame Of Mind

 

Photo Source: Pixabay - CC0 Licence

One of the downsides of a fun time like the festive season, including New Year, is that after all of the time off, fun food, catching up and bright lights, it has to end. You can wring some holiday spirit out of the first few days of January, but before long you’re in the beginning throes of another year - and it can be a stressful realization. Everything that is traditional about this time of year puts some pressure on: New Year’s Resolutions remind you of where you went wrong last year, while that one date marked “Pay Day” looks a long way away at the end of the month as you hang the new calendar.

It may seem tricky to be positive at this point in the year, but the good news is that with the old year gone, you have the chance to make this one the best there has been. It can often feel like a year hasn’t really started until weeks, even months have passed, but if you make sure there is something to be enthusiastic about, you can start knocking this year out of the park before January is even in its last gasps.

Purse strings are tight, but your mind can go where it wants

Much of the “midwinter blues” feeling that we’re all familiar with has to do with the contrast between the jollity of Christmas and the grey deprivation of January. Quite aside from the fact that the last parties of the season have been had, you’re now at the farthest point possible from them coming around again. So having something to plan for - for example, a nice holiday in the summer, or a family birthday in the spring - can help break down the seemingly monolithic time period before you can get the fun back.

The next special day is just around the corner

With two of the year’s biggest holidays so close together, we’re a little spoiled at the end of December. The calendar can look a little bare by contrast when January stretches out in front of you. But remember that there are federal holidays scattered throughout the year, gifts to be bought and received, and it’s not long to Valentine’s Day. If you feel a little light on festivity, you can even pick one day a month to celebrate another country’s holiday - you can mark Italy’s Republic Day in early June with tasty Italian dishes. If you can’t wait that long, Australia Day is just at the end of this month!

Christmas indulgence is gone, but there is a bright side

There is a point in the Christmas period - often somewhere between December 25th and January 1st - when you can start to feel like you’ve had enough of the festive food. Everyone lets go a little for the holidays, and while our taste buds thank us, the rest of the body can bear the brunt. Saying a temporary farewell to party food and drinks, and a more permanent one to eggnog - and bringing back lean meat, veg and lots of water - will make you feel ten times more energetic and draw much less protest from your digestive system.