The bright and shiny energy of a new year—welcome to 2025

Hello sweet souls and welcome back after the holidays. We’ve made it through Thanksgiving, solstice, and the winter holiday season. Now, it’s time to ring in a new year.

A big thank you for continuing to welcome me into your inbox. With the bright and shiny energy of the new year upon us, I want to talk a little about the energy of the fool and goal setting. Let’s snuggle in with a warm beverage, a blanket on your lap, and talk about setting goals for the year that’s right around the corner.

Generally, when we think about goals, we think about the big, earth-shattering goals that change our lives. But, like “overnight successes,” they don’t really exist. All large goals are just small goals built on top of one another. And, when you pair goals with seasonal living, I think you get a much more sustainable way to make changes in your life.

Those big, audacious goals that we traditionally set at the new year are simply not sustainable. For me, they tend to overwhelm my nervous system and get forgotten within a few weeks.

As the new year comes around the corner, I’ve been thinking a lot about the energy of January 1st. What I want to embrace this year is the energy of new beginnings, the energy of the fool’s journey. Because, anytime we embark on a new journey, we are the fool.

In tarot, the first card of the deck is the fool. The fool symbolizes naivete, the beginning of the journey, the start of something new, and a beginner’s mindset. Culturally, we often shame the fool for not knowing enough, but recently, I’ve been thinking about all the beauty there is in a beginner’s mindset, in being the fool.

As someone who has started multiple businesses before, I know this feeling well. When you look back on the journey, you see all of the pitfalls, all of the hard lessons, all of the late nights, all of the stresses around doing what’s “right.” Doing it all over again sounds exhausting most days.

And yet, there’s something intoxicating and magnetic about the beginning of a journey. It’s the energy of newness, the unknown, and naivete that sucks us in.

Understanding the fool’s journey and a beginner mindset is all part of achieving any big goal or dream. So, if you’ve got big dreams or goals this year, join me in tapping into the energy of the fool to achieve those goals.

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1. Become the fool

To be the fool, you must wear blinders. If you’re starting on a new endeavor, this is easy because you inherently don’t know what pitfalls await you along the path. But, if you’re a perfectionist like me, it can be tempting to research the shit out of whatever you're attempting to do. Don’t. Instead, tap into the energy of the fool, your belief that it will all go right, and that you instinctively know what to do.

If you’ve made it this far in life, you’re smart and capable. Trust yourself and just start.

Part of being the fool is looking at the road ahead and seeing all of the wonderful potential. The fool is all about joy, optimism, limitless possibility, and implicit permission to leap into the unknown. That’s what makes this archetype so beautiful. The fool wants you to hurl yourself into the wild unknowns and trust that it will all work out. The innocence and purity of heart provide protection to the fool along their journey.

When we set goals, we have to harness the energy of the fool. We have to go in blind and not know what’s going to happen along the way as we work towards our goal.

2. Bundle your new goal with something old

As you take on something new, you can bundle it with something old. Pair your new goal with something you already do.

I have not so great teeth. And, I really didn’t take care of them in my late teens which resulted in a number of fillings. As I’ve worked closely with my hygienist to repair much of this damage my final goal was to start flossing regularly.

I hate flossing. When it’s time for bed, all I want to do is climb under the covers and dive into my book. I barely have patience to stand in front of the mirror and brush my teeth, let alone floss them.

The problems to overcome:

• Lack of skill to floss properly

• Dislike of plastics and disposables

• Abhorrence of standing in front of the sink

When I listed off these problems to my hygienist, she reminded me of habit bundling. If I wanted to floss more, why not bundle it with reading?

So, I bought biodegradable flossers. I set them on my bedside table. I floss while I read. The best habit bundling is simple.

Pairing a new habit with something you love doing or with an existing habit can be a great way to accomplish a goal.

3. Focus on during, not before

When I shared with people that I taught yoga, this was my favorite response I heard: “I’m not flexible enough to do yoga.” My response was always the same, we all do yoga to become flexible, not because we are flexible.

This illustrates an important part of the fool’s journey and goal setting for me. The fool isn’t all-knowing or capable. He acheives the goal and becomes knowledgeable during the process of working towards it.

In other words, we become flexible by doing yoga, not before we do yoga. We become flexible by showing up on the mat every day, working to learn the language, stretching our muscles little by little, sweating, and struggling.

The messy path is the goal. The fool knows that the journey is what’s important, not the end. Instead of trying to become what you want before you accomplish your goal, use your goal and the messy road it takes you on to become who you want to be.

And, as you navigate the messy path, don’t forget to take care of your container. It’s important to take care of yourself and acknowledge if working towards the goal becomes too much. If it’s not working, if it feels overwhelming, then something needs to be realigned.

You don’t have to figure it all out before you start — in actuality, you can’t and shouldn’t have it all figured out.

4. Get excited

I think one of the most important parts of accomplishing goals is being excited. We have to harness that feeling of boundless hope we feel at the beginning of the journey. To harness the fool and get excited about your goal, visualize the ending, see all the potential for success and happiness, and focus on that feeling.

I recently got an Oura ring and one of the insights I’ve been interested in is my cardio capacity. And, it says I’m 7 years older than I actually am. Ouch. I think of myself as pretty active, regularly walking and going to the gym. While I was initially pissed off and a little offended, it’s spurred me to examine what I do to elevate my heart rate.

So, a goal I’m working toward is going to the gym for cardio more regularly. And, it feels exciting. I’m in the beginning of the journey where it feels fun and full of potential. So, I’m harnessing that excitement to keep me motivated through the first steps of this journey.

5. Pack lightly for your fool’s journey

We all have our baggage. The fool, carries only a small bag slung over his shoulder. He’s a vagabond on a journey of indeterminate length. If you’re starting out on a fool’s journey and getting ready to tumble into the unknown, you’ll want to pack lightly.

Along the way, the inner critic and other small voices in your head will want to tell the fool that they’re on the wrong path, that taking the leap is stupid and dangerous. The fool makes sure to leave those voices at home because where he’s going, he doesn’t need them. While it can be tempting to think that your thoughts are facts, they’re not. When you’re embarking on something new, you have to quiet those voices and tune back into your instincts, to the part of yourself that’s telling you to take this leap in the first place.

Another way to pack lightly at the beginning of your goal-seeking journey is to make your steps towards the goal small. And, I mean tiny. Like, so small it seems stupid easy to do. Like less than 5 minutes a day. We have a tendency to make goals too big, which can push us into a crash where we get overwhelmed and quit everything. I love this TikTok with suggestions of small goals that have high impact. Resist the tendency to try and do everything at once. Instead, start with something small and simple. Maybe it’s taking 5 minutes a day for self care. If even that feels overwhelming, make it even smaller.

I hope you all are excited for your fool’s journey in 2025 and have some goals that feel light, fun, and exciting.