Time is a Construct (Kim)
Whoooooo! NEW YEAR = NEW YOU!!!!
This is what I tell myself literally every day of the week.
Some days I wake up ready to go! I want to do it all. I'm going to do an at home workout, get my self-care ON, eat well, socialize, and my workflow is going to stream like a river through my computer as I complete all my tasks efficiently.
However, most mornings I wake up the same old me, with the same old habits, and the same old fight against change. I lay in bed wondering if anyone would notice if I didn't go to work. I wonder if those healthy habits really work. I put off doing my activities in favor of scrolling through my phone. I spend mindless hours awash in the nothing.
Time is a construct, and one that works well when you want it to. Yet, we always seem to be fighting against it. We feel we have to do it all NOW. We have to do it perfectly. We must, against all odds, change who we are to fit with this time and this construct. Otherwise, we are doing it wrong.
So, we wake up in the morning thinking "New Year, New You" again and again and again.
That sounds slightly depressing. :(
I am here to tell it doesn't have to be. I'm here to tell you that habits and change take time. They take work. They take jumps forwards and steps back. They take breaks, they take hits, they take support and dedication. Though mostly, they simply take time.
Time is a construct. Sure, we can use Monday, the first of the month, the first of the year, as points to start. But we can also use a random Tuesday, the third Sunday in March, the second to last Thursday before your friend's birthday, or literally any other day on the calendar to start.
Every year I dream the biggest dreams I can. I know all the things I can accomplish in any given year. I know small daily habits build into huge accomplishments. I know beating myself up about it probably won't make me do it any faster. I know that I am not the person I was 2 years ago, or even last year. I know I am the product of gradual change.
This blog did not post at its intended time. The world did not suffer. The first blog of 2023 was going to post at some point! I could have put it off for a while and doubtful anyone would have noticed for a bit. But I started today, a Wednesday, almost 2 full weeks into the new year.
Whatever it is you want to do, unless there is an actual hard deadline, you have the time and space you need to do it. You have the time to test the waters, fall in, climb out, stop swimming all together, and then go back if you choose. You have the ability to make the changes you want at the speed you want and not a minute sooner. You can accomplish all your wants by simply starting when you do and continuing to start again and again. Consistency is the winning strategy against time.
Because time is a construct. Besides, it's the start of 365 days somewhere.
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