Welcome to Episode 152. And if you are listening in real time, welcome to 2025. I'm Kristi Angevine.

In this new year, I want to bring you a short sweet message intended to inspire you with something practical. That's free from the hackneyed and sometimes out of control “new year, new you, big new year's resolutions, be better” messaging that you are inundated with.

Let's get right to it.

Welcome to Habits On Purpose, a podcast for high-achieving women who want to create lifelong habits that give more than they take. You'll get practical strategies for mindset shifts that will help you finally understand the root causes of why you think, feel, and act as you do. And now here's your host, Physician and Master Certified Life Coach Kristi Angevine.

Hello, hello everyone. Happy new year. I am so glad that you're here with me today. This episode is brief, and it's just the right amount for the new year. So if you're listening to the day that this is released, it is now January 1, a day that can feel heavy with expectation… or maybe heavy with hangovers.

So whether you are waking up with a fresh sense of possibility, a lingering sense of dread, or just feeling a little disoriented, let me just let you know, you're not alone. The new year can stir up so many emotions.

Let's start with a quick reminder. It is a new year, but you don't need to become a new you. The truth is you're already enough just as you are. And before you object with this laundry list of bad habits that drain you, please set down the clipboard, set down your fancy planner, and just consider for a moment, what if you don't actually need improvement?

The world we live in prizes productivity, perfection, and constant personal growth. This culture of improvement makes it easy to feel like you should always have a personal improvement project going on, particularly around the new year.

But what if we turn this on its head and say no thank you to the new year, new you, and we decline that intoxicating, but artificially sweetened cocktail of “be better”. And instead of improving yourself, you opt for rediscovering yourself.

Instead of trying to create a brand-new version of yourself, which implies the current version is defective, what if you focused on reconnecting with the real you?

Here's the truth. Beneath the perfectionism, beneath the self-doubt, and behind all the striving, is the you that has been there all along. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”

Now I'm all for goals, but in lieu of rabid fixing or changing yourself, how about instead you just uncover or reclaim your most authentic self; the you that's already good, whole, and wise. This authentic or real you, it can't help but be obscured by all the striving and protective coping strategies we learn and all the obvious and subtle socialization that we're swimming in.

Take inspiration from Paul Neustadt when he says that he wants to, “Heal what's been perfected in himself by living in this white, dominant patriarchal culture.”

To this end, I have a tiny reminder linked to a tiny action for you. The parts of you that strive to please, perfect, and perform, the parts that overthink, second guess, and then swoop in to soothe with food or booze or shopping, these are not your enemies. Even your inner critic is not a problem that you need to eradicate.

These parts are simply protective parts of you with habits that served you at one time. They are simply trying to keep you safe in a world that often demands too much. They mean well, but when they are overactive, they can mask the you that's calm, clear, and confident. This you is simply waiting to be remembered and rediscovered.

So here is a small exercise to begin this rediscovery today. This year, instead of setting some big resolution that attempts to fix what's “wrong”, I want you to get curious about what's been obscured.

Here is a way to find your way back to the you that has always been there. I'm going to encourage you to take five minutes and answer this question. What part of me do I want to reconnect with this year?

And there's a second part of this, that if this resonates with you, you can do this instead. This part is: Write yourself a short note that begins with, “The real me knows…” Or, “Deep down, I have always known...”

And with those prompts, just let whatever comes flow. Do not overthink. Just let whatever words come out, come out, and trust that what you see is precisely what you need to hear.

So this year, let's let go of grandiose resolutions based on improvement and instead opt for rediscovery of the already vibrant, creative, lovely you who's just hanging out waiting to be found.

Thank you so much for being here and for starting your year with me. If this message resonated, I would absolutely love it if you shared this episode with a friend or left the podcast a rating or review. Every little bit helps spread this work and connect with those who need it most.

So until next time, in the words of Tina Turner, “You must love and care for yourself because that's when the best comes out.”

Thanks for listening to Habits On Purpose. If you want more information on Kristi Angevine or the resources from the podcast, visit HabitsOnPurpose.com. Tune in next week for another episode.