How to prepare for the new year

As 2020 comes to a close and 2021 is suddenly within reach, a lot of us will have mixed feelings about the new year. Realistically speaking the clock is not going to tick over to midnight and the world turn back to normal. Even though that’s what a lot of us want. So in this time of doubt and confusion just how can we prepare for the new year?

Spend New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day the way you want

If you’re used to spending the new year at parties and big family gatherings then this one might feel a little odd for you. I’ve never been a huge fan of the new year though. I’ve done the whole going out thing when I was a lot younger but for about the last 7 years it’s just been Josh and I and a quiet night in. Even though you may not be able to do what you want this year it’s about finding an alternative that makes you happy. Or if you were never a fan of going out anyway then now is the time to embrace doing something you really want to do!

You can still get dressed up and do your makeup, or you can sit in your pj’s. Cook a meal, order a takeaway, make a massive amount of party food. Play games, watch a film or binge a boxset. There are no rules. On New Year’s Eve we always make loads of party food that we can just pick at throughout the evening then we usually play a game and watch some TV. One year we even did a Breaking Bad marathon! On New Year’s Day we cook a big roast and watch films. The new year can be tough on your mental health so have a plan in place and make sure you fill the time with things that make you feel good.

Set goals

I’m big on setting goals but equally I don’t stress if I don’t achieve them and I think that balance is absolutely the key to being happy with what you want. I didn’t achieve very many of my life goals this year however I excelled in all my blogging goals. I like having something to work towards and focus on. For 2021 I have a lot of home goals, we’ll have been in our home for 5 years in August so it’s really time I got on with a few things. I’m going to create a vision board for all the home stuff I want to achieve to really have something to focus down on.

When you shift your mindset to seeing your goals as something to work towards rather than fully having to achieve straight away it lessens the pressure. I think it’s a much better way to approach what I’d like to get out of a new year.

Save for later!

Start the year off right

I hate January, always have. All the festive magic has gone and winter just feels dark, cold and never ending. Something tells me that January 2021 is going to be extra hard though. At the start of 2020 though I decided to alter my mind set and try and find the positives to ensure the year started in a good way, it led at a much happier and positive month. So I’ll be doing the same again this year. And because I know it’s going to be a struggle for me I might also spend the month making a note of 2 or 3 positive things each day because I know that always really helps me out.

I’ll also be taking my own advice and following my 5 things to do in January to have a great year. I think we all know it’s going to be a tough start to 2021 and it’s going to be so easy to get into a slump and become really unmotivated. It’s not a great way to be though or a good way to start off the new year so I think we all have to put a little extra effort in this January!

Get tidying!

There’s something about a new year tidy that just puts you in a happy place, even if you’re like me and you hate tidying! Josh likes to get the decorations all packed away just after the new year which does make me sad because I just love Christmas so much and I like to cling on to it for as long as possible. However I do like that I can have a big tidy up and still have some time to relax after before heading back to work so there is method in his madness! We always keep a couple of Christmas items out until the 5th or 6th of January though.

We always take this time to do a really big declutter, clean and tidy and it feels very cleansing to start afresh with a neat home. I always crack out some clean and fresh smelling scents from my huge wax melt collection too for when we’ve finished and that really adds the perfect finishing touch!

Reflect on the past year

While many of us can’t wait to see the back of 2020 I think it’s still important to take some time to reflect and think about the year that has just passed. And yes, find the positives. Because somewhere in this shit show of a year there will be positives. So take this time to look at your goals, what you achieved and what you didn’t. What you took steps towards and what made you happy this year.

Don’t be harsh on yourself either, many of us haven’t achieved a great deal this year but we’ve all lived through a pandemic. Through something we could never even imagine and that’s pretty big!

The new year is going to be tough but we’ll get through it. Do you have any tips for preparing for the new year? Share them in the comments.

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