That time of the year is almost upon us. A time to reflect upon the last twelve long months and of course a time to formulate a million objectives and aims for the year ahead, most of which will fizzle and fade by mid-January.
Cynicism or realism, you decide.
As the year draws to a close, inspiring vibes are sprinkled with the exuberance of a two-year-old with a pot of glitter, making them damn hard to avoid. The changing of the year’s last digit sudden becomes a beacon of hope for many, be it for the continuation of a good run or an opportunity to close the door on what was and create a fresh start.
This isn’t a bad thing. Start as you mean to go and all. But instead of creating an exhausting and likely labor-intensive start to 2026, how about setting yourself up for success by toning down your enthusiasm and starting off small. Especially if you’re still carrying a little bit of damage from the shit show that was 2025 (I have yet to cross paths with anyone who considered this a good year).
Maybe for you the past year sparkled like a Disneyfied disco ball on crack. Maybe you achieved your goals, superseded your high expectations, and was graced with luck, love and fortune along the way. Maybe your life was just one big lifetime musical movie without the stereotypical tragedy or heartbreak.
Or maybe your movie worthy year was more in line with a Wes Craven and Quentin Tarantino collaboration, crammed full of irritation, disappointment and an abundance of what the actual fuck moments. For yours truly my year carried less of a movie vibe, and more of a bizarre plotless improv show with a non-English speaking cast, rabid animal extras, and an insane asylum setting.
It really doesn’t matter how crappy you think your year was. I can guarantee there is always someone out there far worse off.
Here’s the thing about bad experiences. They shape you. And whether you like it or not, they strengthen you. I may be focusing this narrative specifically towards writing but it is honestly applicable to all aspects of life.
From a fictional writing perspective, bad experiences provide an excellent source of inspiration and learning.
Difficult experiences expose you to a wide spectrum of intense emotions - pain, grief, fear, and anger. Accessing and understanding these feelings allows you to portray a broader, more authentic emotional range in your characters and narratives, making your writing resonate more deeply with readers.
Overcoming hardship often involves self-reflection and a profound re-evaluation of life, which can lead to greater wisdom and insight into the human condition. This unique lens helps you explore complex themes and avoid clichés, offering readers new ways of understanding the world.
Drawing on real-life struggles allows for the creation of more complex, flawed, and relatable characters. You can better understand and depict how individuals cope with adversity, showing growth (known as post-traumatic growth) or failure, which adds realism and depth to your storytelling.
Writing about a difficult event can help you to let go of thoughts and feelings, turning personal pain into a coherent narrative. This process of creating meaning from chaos allows you to explore universal themes of struggle, survival, and growth that connect with a wide audience.
See! Every cloud and all that.
Don’t feel like to have to shut the door on your less than savory experiences, locking them away with 2025 when the ball drops. Take the positive aspects of them with you into 2026.
If you really want to make a change, chose something, just one thing, to be consistent with. Whether that be writing one evening a week, reading one hour a day, posting on social media or penning a weekly blog. What it is really doesn’t matter. What matters is consistency. Get into the routine of making it a habit you don’t even have to think about. Don’t try to analyze the effectiveness because growth and success will not track steadily. Instead concentrate on the parts not the whole. It’s a huge trust exercise for you and the process.
“You take care of the pennies, the pounds will take care of themselves.”
My mum used to quote my grandmother’s words all the time. Although much of the time this related in the literal sense to finances, the phrase can be applied to so much more and when you do just that you realize that it’s a metaphor to live by.
Instead of focusing on the building the wall, focus on laying each individual brick with care. You don’t need to rush, but you do need to maintain a forward motion. Success in any field is simply an amalgamation of little things done well.
Sometimes just the smallest of endeavors is all it takes to make a positive change in your life.
Wishing you all a safe, happy and hugely successful 2026.