Can we ever really just let the thing go?

New year, new drive, new me — that sudden jolt of motivation that hits sometime between putting away the holiday decorations and writing the new year for the first time. We’ve all felt that jolt that this is the year. The year we finally DO ALL THE THINGS. Professionally. Personally. Energetically.

January has a way of (arbitrarily) making us feel like we’ve been re-energized — as if the chaos of the holiday season and Q4 magically erased itself and left us standing there, refreshed and ready to become the person we’ve been promising ourselves we’d be. This is the year we become the version of ourselves we already know exists.

As a small business marketing consultant, I’ve learned to brace myself for those first few weeks of January. That’s when small business owners get the jolt — equal parts inspired and determined — ready to finally put the plan into motion. The website revamp we’ve discussed for months. The outreach strategy we swore we’d start “soon”. Scheduling the shoot for the fresh images we know will speak to our audience.

But somewhere between the shiny new goals and the color-coded to-do lists, there’s a quieter realization that tends to get ignored. Doing all the things sometimes means… not doing all the things.

Just because you started that Facebook page a decade ago — and still dutifully post into the void — is it actually working for you? Could it just… be there? Just because someone, somewhere declared that TikTok was non-negotiable, does that mean it’s worth the hours of effort if it’s never returned the favor? And that networking group that meets monthly, lunches politely, and never quite moves the needle — do you keep showing up simply because you always have?

The new year always gets me thinking: when we move onward and upward, can we ever really let things go?

Left unexamined, we’re a species that loves to add. Another hobby. Another gym class. More yarn for the knitting project we swear we’ll start. In business, it looks like another platform, another association, another arm of the brand, another team meant to “support” the work — until the work itself feels heavier instead of freer.

So when do we do the harder thing? When do we remove what isn’t working? When do we pivot — not out of failure, but out of wisdom — and release ourselves from the weight of carrying it all?

As we arbitrarily turn the page on a calendar, maybe the most intentional thing we can do isn’t to add something new at all. Maybe it’s taking a clear-eyed look at how we spend our time, our energy, and our attention — and deciding what no longer gets a seat at the table.

Because only then can we move boldly forward, unburdened by the tired things that no longer serve us — in our work, our relationships, and ourselves.

And I couldn’t help but wonder… Is a fresh start really about becoming more — or finally allowing ourselves to carry less?

Cheers to a fresh perspective for 2026. 🥂

xoxo,

laura