Making New Year's Resolutions Like an Astrologer
This is the year. You’re tired of the stale, worn out routine. The time has come to take a new start seriously! You’ve dusted off that favorite self-help book, found while cleaning for the holidays. Finally, you’ve finished doing all the things you were doing for everyone else. In a few days, January 1st is going to roll around, and you’ll definitely start an all new you! Many people look to January 1st as a time to make New Year’s Resolutions; make a fresh start; become a new and improved version of you; but is it really the best time to make a new beginning? How many times have you promised to lose that weight or quit smoking, only to be back to business as usual before February?
Although January 1st is the beginning of the calendar year, and days are starting to get longer, it may not be the best time for you to start something new or change an unwanted behavior. I don’t want to discourage you because I’m a sucker for a good self-help book; but for big changes to your life, could I suggest a couple of little tweaks?
Is January 1st Really the Best Time For a Big Change?
There two times a year I always suggest my clients make a fresh start: The first new moon of change, anyway. winter, which this year is December 28th, and the new moon before their own birthday. If you think that the 28th is coming around too soon for really making that big change, don’t worry, it isn’t. New moons are about planting the seeds of change, not putting the plan in place, and unless you’re a Capricorn, this probably isn't your most powerful time for
Since this is a post about New Year’s resolutions, let’s start by going over my best suggestions for taking advantage of this time of renewal and fresh starts. December is dark and cold. The northern hemisphere has turned as far away from our Sun as possible, and night has taken dominance over our lives. In general, most of us turn inward and slow down as the year seems to wind down. It’s only natural that in all the darkness of the night dominated season of winter we would start considering what we want to do with our lives once the days start getting longer and our energy returns. No matter how we try to disentangle ourselves from the rhythms of nature, human beings will always have a primal connection to Earth that even the most fast paced urbanite cannot deny! So, instead of fighting the need to be reborn as our planet springs back to life, let’s use the rebound to the best of our ability!
It's Never Too Late To Make Your Resolution
First, if you haven’t had time to come up with your New Year’s Resolution, no problem; you still have time – no, really! That’s what the new moon is all about. I would encourage you to use the new moon on Wednesday to really think about what you want to accomplish for the year. The new moon is about digging your roots deep into the earth, not about bursting forth into the world (that’s full moon territory, and we’ll talk about that next). Also, part of being successful at change is, knowing that different kinds of change and growth are supported at different times of the year. January is a new beginning for us all so a new year’s resolution that helps you be a better, more successful person out in the world will be more likely to take root than a personal goal. Try making personal resolutions at your birthday, when your own natural cycle begins.
Now that you’ve put aside some time to really think about your resolution for the New Year, you should consider what you’re going to work on. Are you looking to rid yourself of habits you’ve outgrown? Are there childish behaviors that keep you from moving ahead or being as disciplined as you could be? Do you feel like you need to clean out the old before you can even begin to start to rebuild with a firm foundation? Then the new moon on Wednesday will give you a quiet, dark, moment for contemplating the desire for that change. Maybe instead of stripping yourself of the undesirable, you’re ready to build? Perhaps you spend 2016, like many of us, stripping life down to its barest essentials? Maybe you already feel like an empty vessel, and you’re ready to begin fresh with 2017. Then the calm, inky blackness of the new moon might be the salve to your weary soul you’ve been waiting for all year!
You’ve now considered that “new you” for the New Year, and you've started putting a plan in place. The first full moon is just the first impulse. While we might want to start right now, winter has been about rest, healing, letting the “fields lie fallow” and that’s an important part of the cycle of life. Rushing into your changes before you have a clear head and heart will just cause more work throughout the year. So, before you start putting your changes into place, make sure you have the strength and energy to begin, if not, you may need a whole month to build up to it, and that’s fine! But, if you’ve been working on cleaning out the old and resting up for the last few weeks, then January is your oyster! January 1st is a great time to start talking about your resolution. Talk to people as if you’ve already made it happen. Even if you haven’t taken a single, tangible step toward your future success, just putting it out to the Universe is a beautiful first step so we can assume you’re going to nail this! Between the New Moon in December and the first full moon of January, take a little time every evening (and if you’re really disciplined, take a few minutes in the morning, too) for considering the change you want to make this year. Don’t skip this part, because if I’ve learned anything, it’s that a poorly thought out dream will materialize by default just as well as a clearly formed dream – but you may not like the outcome as well! (We’ll be going over a good use of astrology timing for affirmations in a later post)
January 1st is a Great Time To Let People In On Your Dream!
The New Year is a time to dream big! For most of us, we’ve spent time with those we love and know us best. We’ve put the little energy we have left into reenacting long-standing family traditions, connecting us to our past and those ancestors that have passed on. It is precisely this feeling of deep connection to our past that puts us in the perfect position to sense that primal impulse you were born with that drives you toward your most divine purpose. Using this winter energy to reconnect with your “big why” is, in my opinion, the best use of this new beginning energy of January.
Once we’ve put some real energy into deciding what we want for 2017, it’s time to start growing our dream, just like we would grow an oak tree or a rose bush. For brand new seeds of thought, ideas for our self that are so new we’re relying completely on instinct, I would suggest a new moon beginning. The start will be slow, but you’re putting down new roots and making sure you have fertile soil to grow from. If you started contemplating your “big dream” for the first time during the winter new moon, take some sort of action on January’s first full moon – this year it’s on January 12th. It doesn’t have to be huge action; maybe you just make some phone calls or look up some information about the possibilities. What classes would you need? Who do you know that might know more about what you want to accomplish? What clues and hints have the Universe been trying to show you? Explore these things during the full moon. If you don’t feel like you were quite ready for action on the 12th, don’t feel like your New Years goals are lost, take a little time to think until the first new moon of January, on the 27th, plant those new seeds, and you’ll find your first impulse toward action once February’s Full moon arrives.
Is This The Year You Pick Back Up On A Dream You Packed Away, Maybe?
Could this be a time of renewed desire and interest in a dream you are picking back up? Has winter been a time of narrowing your focus, letting go of what doesn’t seem to be working, reconnecting with your priorities and highest ideals in order to adjust the sails for your journey? In this case, I would recommend working with your focus on the full moon. If you’re already chasing your dream, winter is a little more like making sure you have strong roots and good soil for the next year’s journey of growth. If the last few months have started to show the cracks in your planning, a misalignment with your true self, or the universe just doesn’t seem to be supporting you, the winter is a good time to sit in silence and listen. Changing course, or getting expert advice for adjusting your methods, doesn’t mean you were failing; it means you’re growing with your voyage. Don’t let the winter’s need to strip you down to the bare essentials stop you in your tracks! Take the time from the 28th of December (our first new moon of winter) to the 10th of January (the 11th starts the first full moon phase of winter) to rest, regroup, and listen to intuition. By the time the 12th of January rolls around, you’ll be ready to pick back up chasing that “big why.”
Okay, So When Should I Get Started?
With all that being said, I would suggest making that big personal change at the beginning of YOUR new year, your birthday. About a month or so before your birthday is a great time to evaluate the previous year, look at where you are in your life, and get ready to make your changes. Every birthday, or solar return, is an opportunity for a personal rebirth. You’ll be more likely to follow through and make the changes you want to see in your personal life. Want to quit smoking, or lose weight? Make the commitment and come up with your plan during the new moon right before your birthday. Envision the new you, how you will feel having accomplished this for yourself, and then start on the downhill slide of the full moon phase after your birthday.
What do I mean by the “downhill slide” of the full moon? Well, if you’ve ever watch the moon over the course of the month, you can see the moon get bigger, and rounder every night, until it reaches its peak, then it starts getting smaller again. The full moon “phase” lasts 3 days as it reaches its fullest point and then starts its decline. Anytime I’m starting something like a diet or giving up a bad habit, I pull the trigger on my actual plan the 3rd night of the full moon, fully expecting that as the moon gets smaller it will be taking my poor eating habit, the extra cushion I keep between myself and the world, a need to numb myself with food or nicotine, along with it. When I reach that new moon phase, I again confirm how excited I am about the new me I’m becoming, forgive myself for time I strayed from my new version of my better self, and take a little time on the “upswing” of the new moon (the third day of the new moon phase, when the build toward a full moon begins) to consider what habits I will need to start in order to support my new lifestyle. There’s a very obvious, and easy to follow rhythm to the moon’s cycles, and once you find out how easy it is to let the moon keep you motivated, it will be hard for you to ignore her!
There are definitely other times throughout the year that will provide an energy boost for changes, so by all means, if your birthday isn’t until September, don’t put off that exercise plan for nine months. On the next new moon, be ready to put that plan in place. If you are trying to stop smoking, put that patch on during the next full moon phase. In my experience, adding something to your routine is always aided by the new moon, any new beginning is favored, and as the moon grows, so will your resolve. Ridding yourself of outdated habits or behaviors you have outgrown can be easier with the full moon energy. Of course, there may be some new moons that could be more advantageous for starting some things than others, and some full moons that may give you more help than others, but this is an opportunity to refocus every two weeks! I encourage clients to use these moon cycles throughout the year when they find themselves straying from the goals they set for themselves for the New Year, or on their birthday. So, don’t be discouraged if New Year’s Resolutions don’t seem to stick, look for your next starting point on the wheel and make your own fresh start!
