Let’ start the new year with new, improved and empowered self! This 7 step challenge will help you to achieve exactly this. You can spend as long time on each step as you feel comfortable – from one hour to a week. The most important is to follow all these steps to start the year on a high note, and, most importantly, to remain motivated and energetic as the year progresses.

• Step 1: Detox and Rest
  • This is probably not expected step to start with, but here is why I recommend to do it first: the stress of holiday preparation/celebration/clean-up post celebration might have drained your energy. I actually always start new year by laying low – having my vacation to continue into first week of January and spend it by not seeing anybody (except my husband who lives here too), going to spa, reading books, taking walks, taking long baths, reflecting, dreaming, having hot chocolate, and just thinking what else I can do for my favourite person (me!) to relax further. Detoxing can also include trying to reduce all the fat and sugar that holiday meals are rich of by eating more veggies and soups, drinking more water. You can do digital detox by reviewing and unfollowing all accounts that do not add value to you/you di not enjoy and unsubscribing from email promotions you do not care for. Detoxing can take a form of cleaning up, getting rid of clothes, furniture and other items that drain your energy. For example, my kitchen is one of the busiest places in my home and for the last few months since my daughter was born -fast forward to all the holidays – the amount of stuff that got accumulated there virtually left no counter space. It was something impacting me daily – from cleaning/warming bottles to making dinners, every activity I would do took more time and energy off me because of all the mess. The scariest part about physical mess is that it impacts not only your productivity and creativity but that it contributes to stress and lack of energy. I started this year by rethinking how I approached the counter space. I did not just clean it, I removed and reorganized most things that were there. Now, every time I enter the kitchen, I feel a rush of energy and excitement, similar to when I travel and arrive to the hotel and see the ocean from the window. Think about what area of your life needs the detox/re-arrangement – ideally focus on something that, once fixed, will improve your quality of life on a daily basis.
• Step 2: Get Organized
  • This is a natural second step – once you got rid of all the excess that drained your energy, it is time to get organized to restructure your life so that clutter does not find its way back. For example:
    • If detoxing activities focused on food, you can get more organized by meal planning, getting cook books, getting a whiteboard or a calendar or seeing what food you already have and planning from there
    • If you were digitally detoxing, get control over information you receive, find productivity apps or dedicate specific time of the day to enjoy social media guilt-free and being more mindful with the rest of your time (e.g., by reading or doing excercises when you got free 10 minutes)
• Step 3: Get Inspired
  • This is the most fun step because this is when you dream without limits. If you could do anything, have anything, knowing that you could not fail and succeed every time, what would you do? What would your dream life be like? Will you be spending your days walking on the beach, writing in a Paris cafe or driving a jeep in a dessert? While dream life may feel far away right now, not knowing where you want to eventually be will keep you far away from your dream life forever. If you do not know where you are going, how do you know when you get there? If you have no idea what you want, browse by categories – are you happy with every aspect of your life- financial, work as a source of financial freedom and fulfilment, how you look and feel, relationships (with signficant other, friends, coworkers, family, yourself), quality of life and lifestyle, the skills and knowledge you have, fun experiences and so on. I recommend to find at least one person to have something you want to have. Let’s say your goal is to be a millionaire but now you make $40K a year. Find people that did that, follow them, learn about their stories and what they did to get where they are right now. This is where vision boards fit in the process.
• Step 4: Set Goals and Standards
  • Once you are all inspired, begin writing what is it that you want down. You can write it in a notebook, type it up, whatever works for you. I do not recommend to keep it inside your head as it would be hard to track progress especially if you have multiple goals. To turn dreams into goals, consider the following format: what is it that you want, define it as much as you can, add measurable characteristics (if you want to “get rich”, do you want to make $50K or $50MLN? What is “rich” to you?), consider breaking big exciting goals into smaller goals (monthly or weekly goals), and phrase your goals in the present tense (like you already achieved them). For example, if you want a new luxury car, write “I own 2024 model of Lexus car with (fill out the blanks for more detail) since September 2024”. This gives you self-assurance. Obviously, if you are far away from your goal right now (I want to make millions but now I only make $40K), think about splitting your big goal into smaller goals – I want to make $100K by end of the year). This is more tangible and achievable and yet sets you on an exciting path towards your goal.
  • The better approach is to switch from goals to standards. For example, if a goal is to have a lean body, the standard could be the same but you will approach it differently. With a lean body as a goal, you can feel that it is somewhat far away and requires work to get there. With a lean body as a standard for yourself, you will be selective in what you eat and do because it forces more accountability and control. Instead of a goal to be in a relationship, your standard can be more specific kind of relationship that you will hold yourself and others accountable for. If your goal is to have a clean home at all times, your standard could be “I live in a clean organized home I deserve”. Standards are more uplifting but they also force you to level up and not settle for whatever life throws your way.
• Step 5: Enable success/ Create new routines
  • Behind every successful person lies a number of things: supportive environment, success tools, daily rituals, activities and routines, supportive people or even a team of professionals. For example, if your goal is to write a book then create an environment where you want to write (a writing nook, a desk, a comfy chair, locate a cozy coffee shop). Then you can research and find tools for writing – apps to send you reminders, writing groups or rooms, maybe a new keyboard. You can also come up with a routine – for example, having a cup of tea, burning candle and some jazz music playing first before you sit to write. You want to condition your brain to associate certain activities, sounds, smells or food with your desired action. For example, when I was studying for exams at university, I would try to wear the same outfit I will be wearing, use the same perfume, use the same pen and so on.
• Step 6: Take care of business
  • Now it is time for action! A nice way to start is by taking care of business – any kind of routine problem that needs to be addressed. Maybe you need to call your bank, schedule a doctor’s appointment or pick up laundry. Whatever it is, do it first and you will feel more enabled, even if the activity has nothing to do with your goal. Then, start doing this related to your goal.
• Step 7: Report back on progress and reward small wins
  • Now that you are doing things related to your goals, think about how you will track your progress. I t can be an app, a whiteboard, a notebook, excel, whatever works for you. What you need to decide is: a) what you will use b) how often you will report back and review progress (can be one pager where you do checkmarks next to your desired activities daily but also a different, big picture view for monthly progress) c) what are the milestones that signal you are moving forward? For example, if your goal is to save $12,000 by end of the year, you should have $6,000 saved by June. You can also do quarterly or monthly milestones.
  • Think about reward system – how will you reward yourself for sticking to your goals? Come up with fun things you will enjoy to celebrate your achievement. You got this!