The New Year is upon us and whether you are still going strong with your New Year's resolutions or have fallen away from them, there is no guilt here.

Guilt and shame are a constant battle. In a world filled with "do more", "be more", and "buy more"; it is so easy to fall into the trap of comparison leading to guilt and shame. I have often found the exact opposite to be true. More of everything mostly just leads more to manage not more happiness.

What God really wants you to know, is that you are exactly as he created you to be which is why I am leaning into less this year.

Less business.
Less obligations.
Less stress.
Less stuff.
Less guilt.
Less shame.

When we're so busy chasing after more, our true gifts and talents get diluted. We are told from a young age to diversify our talents, and I agree to a point. It is awesome to try and experience new things. This is how we learn new skills and discover what fits our talents and interests.

However, I think the teaching of "get good at as many things as possible" falls short when we diversify ourselves to the point of "di-worsifying" ourselves. In other words, we spread ourselves so thin that we're really not doing anything that well.

This mindset of more is often what is holding us back. Keeping us stuck in the same humdrum of life. It's the place where we're not really failing but also not living up to our full potential. Instead, we are stuck somewhere in the middle, and it usually doesn't feel quite right.

So rather than adding a whole host of things to get better at this year, focus on just one or maybe two. Most importantly, make sure they are in line with WHO you wish to become instead of what the world around you is telling you (or selling to you) to become.

So often we follow the latest trend; whether is clothing, food, or hobbies; in the pursuit of a certain lifestyle or aesthetic. I know because I have been there, and still find myself tempted at times.

I see the new shiny lifestyle that I think I want, but when I actually stop to think about it, that's all it is. Something shiny and new. Not something that actually aligns with the person I wish to become.

This mindset is what led me to a minimal-ish lifestyle. I realized that by saying no to all the shiny new things; I had the time, space, and energy to discover and hone in on that which I really love and am gifted at.

So rather than adding a whole host of things to get better at this year, I am focusing on what I can eliminate.

What is getting in the way of WHO I am trying to become?
What can I get rid of to increase the potency of that which I have decided to pour into?

Even though spring cleaning is a couple months away, I love to do my deep clean and declutter at the beginning of the New Year. It is a time when so much new is coming into my life. New gifts that we received for Christmas. New hope. New dreams. New goals.

It is the perfect time to begin eliminating that which you are holding onto without purpose. Old habits that are derailing your progress. Physical clutter that is consuming time and mental energy to manage. Calendars that are overstuffed out of obligation and are keeping you from your most important work.

There won't be room for all the good new things in our lives if we don't take the time to declutter the old that is no longer serving us.

What is holding you back from the person you desire to become?

Until Next Time,

Kayla