#1: The beauty of beginnings
Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end
And just like that, we’re living in 2025!
The start of the year can bring up lots of feelings: plenty want a brand new life, others hope things won’t change too much, and truthfully some of us are still hungover on last year. And yet, we’re starting on a new chapter. Things will be different. You can’t hold on to everything and everyone—but mostly this is a good thing!
Here are five #StudioNotes to remember when the glitter of the last holiday party has settled and regular programming resumes. Take what you need and share the rest:
Start over as many times as you need to, not just on January 1st. Every year, we are collectively sold on the promise of a fresh slate; a chance to do things better this time. And it’s true, there is magic in starting over. Maybe a new calendar is just what we need to remember we actually get 365 chances to do so each year.
There is equal magic in continuing what works well. Acknowledge and appreciate the progress you’ve made on good habits, and keep going!
Resist the pressure to overhaul every area of your life. Take the babyest steps away from what no longer serves you until you completely drop it. Personally I think stopping at least one bad habit over time is more sustainable than trying to drop all bad habits in one go.
Process your 2024 experiences at your own pace! Be gentle with yourself if there’s a lot to be grateful for, and more so if you need to grieve. Remember that joy could be just as vulnerable to feel as sorrow. And if you never got to properly process 2023, 2022, or the years before that—you still can! There is no timeline for deep emotions (good and bad) that demand to be felt before they can be let go. Find a method of processing that feels good to you and embrace it unapologetically. I for one have been struggling to edit my 2024 recap reel (better late than never!)—but I’m choosing to see this as a good problem to have. As Winnie the Pooh says, “How lucky am I to have had something that makes saying goodbye so hard?” <3
Embrace the new season energy to fuel the change you desire. Did you know that I actually started my artist life thanks to a New Year’s resolution? I committed to #100daysofpolipaints back in 2016, as a way to decompress from my then-marketing job. So yes, I do believe in the power of new year’s resolutions, but it’s a matter of choosing a challenge that is meaningful to you.
Some of my earliest works! In the end, I completed my self-imposed 100 day challenge from January to October 2016 and the rest is history.
My January theme is integration—processing my experiences and actually sharing them. Sometimes I still feel so cringey “putting myself out there” no matter how long I’ve been exposing myself as a creative. Whenever I feel imposter syndrome creep up, I remind myself that by celebrating the journey, I give others permission to do the same. If I can inspire just one person with each post, it would’ve been worth it. Just the fact that I’m publishing writing again is a major win for me, so thank you for being on the receiving end of this letter! This is me, beginning again.
My loves, the beauty of beginnings is that you can claim a fresh start at any moment. So if not now, when?
Have a great first full week of 2025!
xxxx, B
