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- #255: Feeling the January Slump? Why Fresh Starts Don’t Work (And What Does)
#255: Feeling the January Slump? Why Fresh Starts Don’t Work (And What Does)
🚀 Plus More Actionable Breakdowns
Productivity Stacks Newsletter
Issue No. 255
The Best in Evidence-Based Productivity
for Freelancers, Small Business Owners & Founders
Helping You Work Smarter and Live More
It’s late January. How’s that New Year’s momentum holding up?
If you’re like most people, that fired-up energy you felt on January 1st has probably faded. Maybe you’re thinking “I really need to get back on track…I’ll start fresh on Monday.” Or “Once this busy period ends, THEN I’ll focus on that system I wanted to build.” Or “Next month, for sure.”
Here’s the thing: that pattern is exactly what’s been sabotaging you. And it’s not just you—I repeated this same cycle for most of my adult life.
Every Monday. Every January 1st. Every “fresh start” I could find, I’d decide THIS was the time I was finally going to fix my diet. I tried everything: keto, intermittent fasting, you name it. They all worked. For a minute.
I’d feel that surge of motivation. I’d be all in. The initial results would come. And then, like clockwork, the second those major initial benefits faded, so did my resolve. I’d fall off. Again. And tell myself: “Next Monday. Next month. Next January 1st.”
Sound familiar?
In this article, I’m going to show you:
Why waiting for “the right time” actually makes change harder (there’s fascinating research on this)
The three things working against you when you combine fresh starts with big changes
What to do instead—and how I finally lost 25 pounds and kept it off by breaking this exact pattern
Let’s start with why Monday (or January) feels so magical.
More breakdowns & articles below! 👇
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More breakdowns & articles
Did you miss one of our previous breakdowns? Here are some you might find helpful.
Are you constantly battling between productivity and distraction in the digital age? As a business owner or freelancer, your smartphone is your lifeline, but could it also be hindering your success? Discover how the digital revolution is rewiring our brains and transforming our behavior. Arm yourself with the knowledge you need to master your digital tools and unleash your full potential in the modern business landscape.
Your daily experiences, interactions, and projects are shaping your mind and influencing your success. By understanding how your brain decides what to remember, forget, and transform into core skills, you can harness the power of experiential learning to skyrocket your business and optimize your life. Learn how to train your brain the right way to think smarter, not harder.
I have to admit that I don’t remember where I read the actual term “vacation mode” for the first time but suffice it to say I did not invent it. We could even call it the “vacation phenomenon”. I know most think of “vacation mode” as that feeling of being on vacation and that’s not what I mean here…but whatever you want to call it, I am capitalizing on it now and it also just came up in a discussion in virtual coworking in the inner circle. PLUS, the great news is you don’t need a postponed wedding to use this trick…So let’s get to it. 💪
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I hope you found this valuable!
Wishing you much productivity!
- Jenae :)
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