New year... the same you?

With the arrival of a new year it's hard to avoid the expectation of having a fresh start. Plastered everywhere are the latest diet books, meaningless quotes on social media about how it's time for a 'new you.'

But what about the old you? The you that has journeyed to get you to this very moment. The you that has survived so much and tried so hard.

Although I think it's sometimes nice to have a set point to catalyse the start of change, remember that just because it's a new year doesn't mean you have to change who you are. Perhaps you want to use it as a time to (slowly) grow and improve, but Rome wasn't built in a day... so you shouldn't expect that same level of development for yourself.

My boyfriend has a book that he reads a passage from every morning - The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman. It's become one of my favourite moments of the day when he finishes reading the day's passage, then automatically turns to me and says "read this!"

One from the other morning that I've not stopped thinking about was...

'Let all your efforts be directed to something, let it keep that end in view. It's not activity that disturbs people, but false conceptions of things that drive them mad.' - Seneca, On Tranquility on Mind 12.5

There is huge power in planning all the way to the end. But I think it's important to remember that having an end in mind places no guarantee that you'll reach it. This is something I know in myself I find difficult to accept. I want so much and so badly that the fear of not being successful in reaching that goal quite frankly frightens me. It's important for me to take time to accept things I can't control and I'm very lucky to have an amazing support in my boyfriend who encourages me of that daily.

So in case you too need some encouragement today here’s something my boyfriend once told me that makes me feel better.

"Find joy in the process and not the destination, otherwise you might miss living a good life."

And with that, I'm off to enjoy the steps I'm taking today to reach my goals. No matter how small the win of today is, make sure you celebrate it!

Here's a few different links to the famous book my boyfriend reads - Waterstones, Amazon and Abe Books.

Rhianna | My Kernow Life

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© 2022 Rhianna Hinton