A 2025 Goals Try On
Easier than a wardrobe clear out...
“When we unpick the myths, we open ourselves up to a new-found sense of freedom and get to design our lives from scratch.”
Emma Gannon, The Success Myth
Hi loves,
I’ve been thinking about goals and the ‘shoulds’ around them.
It’s interesting… trying to set goals when they won’t magically appear in front of you in announcement text. I taught a gorgeous goal setting class last week and I was sure there would be MORE clarity for my 2025 goals BUT alas nope.
I don’t mind one bit because I know my creative practise is quieter in winter. More enthusiasm and clarity will drop in Spring.
Being in the season of your life
As I was sorting through my capsule wardrobe last week, I realised how attached I am to certain pieces of clothing. (Yes I’m one of those people who buy the same size and style of basic tee and vest from the same shops and have done for years.)
There are also other pieces that remind me of younger versions of myself, two wedding dresses, old work clothes I’m not sure I’ll wear again.
Here and now, I’m still all of those versions of myself with a 2025 coat on. That’s the weirdest thing about the first month of a new year.
2024 was a vortex of learning and highs. This first chapter of the year is spilling over from the work I did back then. I’m not sure how to romanticise 2025. I don’t know how I want to engage with it, play with it, dream with it.
It’s frustrating in a way because there is always much to be done.
Looking back to look forward, these are some things I dreamed of and I’m proud of before we moved up to the Northumberland coast.
Move to the beach ✔️
Own UK property ✔️
Live and work abroad ✔️
Fall in love, get married, have children (yep that was one whole thing) ✔️
Welcome a dog into our family (this happened a few times over in different ways) ✔️
Work an allotment and pet chickens (retired the lot last year) ✔️
Run a 6 figure business doing work I love with commissioners and clients who respect me and my time ✔️
And then there are the other things. The things you want more than anything but can’t ‘force or make’ happen. The things that don’t belong on a list that anyone else would be particularly interested in. The things you can’t ‘try on’ in the same way as practical goals.
For right now I’m enjoying delivering the work I do in the world, connecting with family and friends and moving through winter.
“We have more faith in what we imitate that in what we originate”
Bruce Lee
When you design your own life, there are periods where you stall, you second guess yourself. I am being so mindful of other people’s energy and influence and bringing everything back to centre. I’m looking forward to teaching a visioning class this week and better understanding what 2025 is asking of me.
We’ll see what lands,
Claire
✨
Some work-y things I’m excited about in 2025
I’ll be speaking at Alnwick Story Fest again this year, it’s February half term - come hang out? Tickets are £10.
I’ll be at the Writer MBA conference in New Orleans, USA in March - can’t wait to meet some of you.
I’m running a day retreat with
at Ease Retreats on 9 May and we have extended early bird pricing and the deadline for our bursary slot so do drop her a message if you’d like to book - payment plans available. More here or email Tanya. ⤵️
You might have missed
My chat with
on Instagram, our sense of self online and settling in the year ahead.
A free class writing class with me next weekend?
You might like to buy
My course - Adventures in Audio and Video - Perfectly Imperfect Podcasting on Substack. You don’t have to get it ‘perfect’, you can ‘just start’. Classes on the practical side of video podcasting, how to make the most of your content and mindset sessions too. Previous students have gone on to launch podcasts of their own with 10s of thousands of listens in just a few months. If you’re being called to re-kindle your authentic voice, increase confidence and connect on a deeper level with your audience, this could be the course for you. ✨
A ticket to the mindful writing festival hosted by
A great round up Claire. I designed my life in 2019, now redesigning again. Still trying to declutter the wardrobe though. We have so much atatchment to clothes and the memories they hold
Thanks for the goal inspo!