Welcome To The Community

Together, we’ll dive deep and find the strength to never give up because Great Things Take Time.

If you’re reading this, I appreciate you sticking around despite Francis Thee Elf’s shenanigans last week. In a way, I envy Francis. He just gets to show up, blow it up, then head out until next year. The rest of us have to stick around for the other 11 months of the year. 

Francis has a pretty clear goal: spread holiday cheer by reminding people to not take themselves so seriously. Perhaps this is something we should take to heart going into 2025. I hear he has one more visit before disappearing until next year…

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Here's what's in today's email

• A Love Note To Your Future Self

• Moments with Maurice

• What's Got Me Smilin'

A Love Note To Your Future Self

The big one is coming up this Wednesday. It’s the ultimate start date. If you’ve wanted a fresh start, well, this is it. Whether you’ve decided to make New Year’s resolutions or not, you probably already have an idea of how you want the year to go and what goals you have. It’s impossible for us to look at a year ahead or any period of time without imagining what our life will look like. 

It’s great to have goals and expectations, even if they are as simple as finding joy in everyday life. Goals keep us growing and improving, an important thing to keep from being stagnant. However, a goal doesn’t need to be a big fancy thing, and in fact, when we try to recreate ourselves into something we’re not, that’s when we see the biggest failure. 

Have you heard of “Fall Off The Wagon Day”? This is not an official day, but it’s becoming a more well-known day that usually comes around the first week of February when most people give up on their New Year’s resolutions. Typically around 40 days after the new year, people realize that they bit off more than they can chew, or the novelty of whatever life change they’re making has worn off. 

Think about when you’re in a workout class. How often have you heard the instructor say. “It’s just a minute of work, you can do anything for a minute.”

With 2025 right around the corner, don’t fall into the trap of thinking you need to re-invent yourself in one fell swoop. Usually, our Great Things are within reach with only a few small tweaks.

Always Wanting More

No matter where we are in life, we’re probably going to want something more. We want to get faster, fitter, get a promotion, make more money, buy a house, or achieve other Great Things. But we don’t need a total transformation to start living now. You don’t wake up one morning being able to lift something 40lbs heavier, speak a different language, or live in a new place. These things usually don’t come from a sudden and drastic change to your life, but from small incremental changes that don’t require an alias, a new schedule, or a completely brand new way of life.. Many of the overnight success stories you hear about are actually 10 years in the making. 

Think about a plant. Each day you give it a little something- a little sunlight, water, or fertilizer, and each little thing compounds on itself. You’re not buying a brand new fancy planter, your plant won’t care if it’s in terracotta, plastic, or wood, you’re giving it the small little things it needs to blossom into something greater. It might feel boring, but boring is okay. Boring provides the foundation you need to add the fun “decorative” stuff on top.

If you’re making checklists to meet your goals, consider including small wins that will add up over time, building a foundation block by block.

Crystal Clear

Whatever you decide, get crystal clear with your goals. Clarity leaves no room for confusion about success. If you can’t clearly articulate what you want, how are you going to achieve your Great Things? How will you know when you’ve gotten to where you want to be?

Stand with your decisions with conviction, and own who you want to become. Just because others are saying you should do one thing doesn’t mean you need to listen at all. That includes me. 

In the past, I used to tell people, “Get outside! It’s a beautiful day and even a few minutes in the sunshine will make you feel wonderful.” While I still support this, it’s important to recognize that blanket statements don’t make sense for everyone and to not always take everything at surface value. 

If something doesn’t quite make sense to your life, ask yourself, is there something else you can do that gives you a similar result that works better for you? In this day and age, there are experts and knowledgeable professionals for every aspect of life, but there are also “experts” and it’s important to recognize the difference. Passionate people can motivate and inspire, but they can also leave us feeling confused and on the wrong track. 

So Where Do You Go From Here?

Well, whatever direction you want. But what I’m going to be doing is sitting down to go over what Great Things I’d like to achieve in the next year. I’ll sit with myself to determine what I want to get out of life, and then work backwards to make tangible goals and checkpoints along the way. Next, I’ll find small incremental things I can do daily that are those building blocks to build something Greater. 

Feeling stuck with finding something small? Consider thinking about one of these small wins:

• Could I be drinking more water?

• Can I incorporate one new type of movement into my routine each day/week?

• Who is someone new I can have a conversation with?

• Is there one thing I can do daily to my appearance for myself? 

• Is there a skill I can practice daily?

There are just a few examples to get you started. There is no wrong answer when it comes to your goals. 

Now if you’re worried about keeping them, consider writing yourself notes where you can find them, or scheduling reminders in your phone or emails to be sent in the future to keep you on track or remind yourself what you’re working towards. Write yourself a little love note reminding yourself why you’re working towards something, but also what you’ve already accomplished and that you’re worthy of praise.

Who wouldn’t like to receive a note from yourself reminding you how great you are?

Don’t forget, Great Things Take Time, they’re not going to happen overnight. When obstacles come your way, don’t give up, don’t give in, but find a way around them and continue on. You’ve got this.

Moments with Maurice

Space to reflect on the things that make up our lives.

As a child, Christmas was full of magic and tradition. I’m sure that many of you can relate to the expectations of the holiday season. For me, this looked like delicious food and lugging a Christmas tree from some far-flung region in the city no matter how many times I got stabbed by the branches.

Traditions are there to make us feel at home, but sometimes, for whatever reason, they don’t look the same. It’s important to take stock of what made you feel special, but also to understand that things can’t always be the same. The world is ever evolving and changing, so we must as well, and so must our traditions.

This week, I asked The Collective to reflect on their holiday celebrations and how they’ve changed over the years. No matter what, they will always be special in our hearts.

Because no matter what, there is always something to smile about.

Trying Something New

The past few weeks have been all about new experiences. One of the things I’ve decided to focus on now and in 2025 is to add new things to my day-to-day. This doesn’t mean I’m skydiving or doing a big thing every week, but adding in little things here and there.

Right before Christmas, I took a class on cocktail making. This was a fun way to learn how to spruce up meals, not just by throwing a bunch of random liquids in a glass. Alcoholic or NA, it got me thinking of small ways I can add excitement to my life. Should I start preparing my electrolytes like this?

Christmas dinner with the family and plenty of mac and cheese to accompany all the other delicious foods. Don’t worry, I plan on sharing some of my favorite Southern recipes in 2025!

Wishing you all a wonderful end to your holiday season and a wonderful start to 2025. Whatever you have planned for the next year, remember:

-Adrian