Branding Your Brand New Year

Around this time, several years ago, as we were hauling the Christmas tree out to the curb and enjoying the last of the pumpkin pies, my husband and I got to talking about resolutions for the New Year. He shared with me a resolution that he and his sister had made some years before in order to jump start their fitness and exercise plans for the New Year. It was simple, yet effective: "Put the sneakers on." Those words fueled their actions. Had a tough day at work and don't feel like going to the gym for the day's workout? Well, just put the sneakers on. These were words that went beyond the vagary of most resolutions, and went into a direct action. Put the sneakers on. It was, and it is, still, pure genius.

Over the years, we've continued this tradition of branding the brand New Year. One year it was "clear the clutter," and that issued in a top to bottom effort to organize our household stuff. Another year it was "purge the circle" - ridding ourselves of toxic relationships that were dragging us down and not lifting us up. This was a hard one to execute, but the results were tremendously freeing and soul-satisfying. So what's on tap for 2015? Maybe "read more books," although Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg has already claimed that with his New Year's promise to read a new book every other week, and Arianna Huffington has also pledged to read more good books. I like soup, so maybe our 2015 brand could be EAT MORE SOUP. Although that sounds more like a Campbell's Soup advertisement. "Just do it" has been done to death.

There were some years where the theme just presented itself, but this year, it's a bit of a jumble. We're being pushed and pulled into so many different directions with aging parents, our own aging bodies, and work, work, work. Never have we needed spiritual, mental and physical rejuvenation more, and never have we had so little time to achieve it. For now, though, I'll be content to stop, take a slow and deep breath, and hold onto the brief stillness of this brand new, unbranded New Year, like freshly fallen snow.  

Happy New Year: A Few Words of Advice for 2013

Dear 2013,

I know that's it's your first official day on the job, and that you're probably up to your elbows in it as you and your staff set up your new offices. I hope that the move in wasn't too taxing, especially since we all know that 2012 had a nasty habit of leaving a mess behind (fiscal cliff, anyone??). And while I don't wish to speak ill of someone not here to defend themselves, let me be frank - there's a lot of us around here who are glad to see 2012 go. Look, I'm not a gossip, but, personally, I think that 2012 had a bad attitude. He was difficult to work with, uncooperative, and moody as hell. Don't get me wrong! 2012 could be nice...sometimes. But, it never lasted for very long, and soon, he'd have one of his epic temper tantrums, and, oh boy, you just wished you could skip ahead and get to 2013!

Which leads me to my next point - watch your back 2013. Look, there are a lot of people around here who say they want to be your friend. On December 31st, they'll raise their glasses and toast to you. For the first month, they'll even say things like, "Happy New Year," like they're wishing you well. But, no one will ever ask you if YOU'RE happy, 2013. And the next time December 31st rolls around, those same people who praised you in the beginning will curse you. Think this can't happen to you?? Just take a look at 2012. Yes, that gnarled, withered old man, limping along with a cane, with the scraggly beard and the tired, sad eyes - he started out young and spry, just like you, with the dewy skin and the bright, innocent eyes of a happy baby. So do your best, 2013, but prepare yourself. There are going to be people who will say that they can't wait for you to be over. A lot of people are going to compare you to 2012, and there are even some who thought they were smart enough to predict how you'd turn out. Try not to listen to them. Every year that has gone before you leaves with some regret, some secret or not-so-secret thing left undone. My advice? Don't worry about it - it'll keep until the New Year:)

Re-Entry

As the ball dropped, or the Snooki, if you were so inclined, kicking 2010 out into the cold, a lot of us also said goodbye to that end of the year oasis called the holidays. Those two weeks have become our salvation - a time for sleep, catching up with friends, and taking things more slowly. But, as I lay staring at yet another awful '80s movie playing on cable, I knew not only that every day put me one day closer to the end of my vacation, but that, in a way, I was looking forward to the return of my routine. Now, I'm not a masochist by nature, but an excess of anything pleasurable can be, well, excessive!

During my typical work week, there's a ritualistic order to everything - make coffee, read emails, meet with clients, do conference calls, complete projects. It all zips along at a comfortable and familiar hum until I look up and the day is done! But the days during vacation seem to be made of taffy - stretching out, and seeming to lengthen beyond their 24 hours. In place of checking things off of my to-do list, I found myself in a state of indecision and confusion at 11am in my pyjamas as Hoda and Kathie Lee were signing off, wondering what the day's date was and having an internal negotiation as to whether showering before breakfast could be called "optional."

So now, here I am, Day One of my return to work and to a reality filled, once again, with a continuous loop of email messages, church meetings, volunteer commitments, and me, wondering, once again, just when, exactly, the next vacation will be!

I'm just saying!