Looking for a Creative Start to The New Year?
Are you looking for the best way to start your new year? There are so many different thoughts and processes on how to start out the new year the “right way”. But what process will help you meet your goals and get a great creative start to the year?
This is a question I’ve been asking myself over the last few months. 2024 was a challenging year for me filled with loss and difficulties. I’m so glad that we’re in 2025 and I can’t wait to see what amazing things come of this year!
After trying so many systems and ideas over the past 20 years, I have found a process that works for me.
Don’t Start with New Year Resolutions
I know the idea of New Year’s resolutions is to come up with a resolution that you’re going to start on January 1st and keep perfectly all the way through the year. The problem with this is that we usually choose too many things. Many of these resolutions are unrealistic and we expect to start out the year perfectly mastering our New Year’s resolutions.
There’s a reason that only 8% to 16% of people manage to keep their resolutions throughout the year.
It’s a horrible way to start out the year. By the end of January, most of us have already dropped our resolutions or are frustrated that we didn’t keep them.
My Journey into Goal Setting and Intentions
I have been trying different methods for years about how to effectively set goals and find intention for the new year. I’ve tried all sorts of methods and philosophies. Many of them had good components but overall were hard to stick with.
Some just really didn’t work for me due to complexity. I found that many of them expected me to have my days perfectly mapped out, which isn’t my life. How many times have I had to pivot from what I planned to do because an emergency came up that needed my attention? It happens all the time.
Helpful Goals and Intentions
The key for me was finding a way to set goals and intentions in a way that was helpful. I needed a process that didn’t focus on perfection. A process that could be easily adjusted and picked up again if (and when) I fell off track. I needed something that was forgiving but still held me accountable for my goals.
It took a while, but I have finally figured out a way to define my values. From there creating goals, and finding intention in a way that was healthy and manageable throughout the year.
Finding Purpose in Goals and Intentions
To make this easier, I created a set of worksheets and included them in a 22-page e-book. This way I could easily reference back to the process and exercises throughout the year.
If you’d like to see my process and be able to follow along with me throughout the year as we focus on finding intention and purpose for our year, you can purchase the e-book here!
Tired of the usual New Year's resolutions? Let’s focus on setting a meaningful intention for the year! Learn how you your values, goals and intentions intersect to make sure you have the best year yet!
This 22 page e-book includes worksheets to help you define your goals and intentions for the year.
I wanted to make it affordable, so it’s available for $10 CAD (approximately $7 US). This is a way that you can have access to a tool that you can use year after year. It also helps support my business so that I can keep creating content for you to enjoy!
Put Your Intention Where You’ll See It
For both goals and intentions, you need to see them regularly to be able to keep them at the forefront of your mind. It’s so easy for them to fall to the wayside. I like to keep a printed copy of the e-book in my planner so that I can always reference back to it.
For my intentions, I like to turn them into art. By hanging an art piece in my studio, it reminds me throughout the year of the intentions I set. This way my intentions can stop being great ideas and become habits and part of my daily life.
Canvas of Intentions
To help you create art with your intentions, I made and recorded a beautiful layered mixed media canvas class. On this art piece I include my intention so that I can be reminded of it throughout the year.
You can find this online, on-demand course at my shop. It includes the e-book and walks you through every step of the 7-layer project. If you’re looking for a way to challenge yourself in mixed media, this is the perfect course for you!
Tired of the usual New Year's resolutions? Let’s focus on setting a meaningful intention for the year!
Join me for a fun, mixed media class where we’ll explore how to start the year on the right foot, using personal expression to bring your intentions to life on canvas.
Even if you’re new to mixed media, it’s a great opportunity to push yourself. I have many students that are new to mixed media and have completed this course. They went in skeptical that they could get good results, but were amazed by the final result!
I love it when my students come in thinking that the technique is impossible. But after working through the steps, they are amazed at what they can create!
If you’d like to join this course, you can find it in my shop for $35 CAD (approximately $25 USD). It includes the e-book, flower printable, 4 ½ hours of edited video content, plus several bonus videos!
What’s Your Plan for this Year?
I hope that this has given you insight and ideas for how you can make a great plan for your new year! It’s always hard to know where to start, so I hope that sharing my process has helped you get on the right track!
We don’t drift in the direction we want to go. This is why we need to go into the year with a sense of purpose and direction, so that we can live the life we’ve always wanted!
I’d love to hear about your planning process for the coming year and what works for you! Please leave a comment below, I’d love to start a conversation with you!
