Some of us are just starting the new year — and that’s OK 

If you’re ready to start your personal new year, Coach Tish and wellness artist and influencer Tracy G share some tips on how to get in the game. 

On any given day, you can catch Tracy G, wellness artist and co-host of “Sway in the Morning,” sparking self-reflection and modern-day Black girl wisdom on social media. One such post in January, captioned “January’s branding can be both a treasure and trigger,” resonated with thousands of overwhelmed and tired Black women dragging themselves into 2023. Finally, someone was out here saying it: Some of us don’t feel like vision boarding and joining a gym in Q1. Can we have more time?

Yes. The answer is Yes. 

Easing into 2023 for Tracy started with taking inventory of how she navigated 2022. For her, this year would be different. 

“One of the things I realized for 2022 is that I had found myself surrounded by so many other people’s timelines. And so maybe that looked like being in silent competition with some of my peers, which would make me feel like I had to move at a much faster pace,” said Tracy. “For what reason, other than for my ego to feel like I had worthiness? Because, for many of us, our wounds are either around a feeling of worthlessness or a feeling that we’re unlovable. So once you get into that rabbit hole, it’s a marathon that never stops because there’s always someone ‘ahead of you’ and you don’t know the story behind their stride,” she continued.

Tracy calls the need to go at the same pace as everyone else “faux urgency,” and in a world where everyone is presenting the best version of themselves (you know, the ultra-motivated, organized go-getters on your timeline), it can feel like you’ve got to keep up the pace. The thing is, you get to decide when you’re ready to come out and play with the rest of us. You call the shots of your life, and if slow and steady is the pace that feels aligned with you, then slow and steady it is. 

If Q2 is go-time for you, here are some tips from Tracy to clear the fog and start doing life on your own terms. 

Start with journaling how you feel throughout the day 

“Sit down with the journal and think about the way you feel throughout the day when you wake up in the morning,” Tracy suggests. Write down those feelings. And when I say feelings, I mean also looking at the physical sensations of your body. How does your chest feel? Tight in the morning? Does it feel really tight before you have to do a particular task for work? Is your breathing very shallow? Do you notice that at 1 p.m., right when you come back from lunch, there’s a lot of tension in your shoulder? Those feelings give you clues into the thoughts that are the catalyst for those feelings.

Identify limiting beliefs; notice when negativity shows up

“You have to really question if the actions or inactions you’re choosing are serving you,” said Tracy. “And when you replace (a negative thought), you want it to be with something that your body recognizes as fact. I think sometimes with affirmations, where we can go wrong and feel like our own fraud is we can make them a little bit too massive,” she added. 

Microdose your commitments 

“Before you commit to doing this for the rest of the year, just do it for two weeks and see how you feel with that. Or maybe you’re like, ‘Oh, actually, I don’t even need to do that. Really, I need to add my meditation practice.’ Do that for two weeks and just sit down and notice what it gave you or notice what you’re lacking now,” said Tracy. 

For those of us finally ready to start 2023, cheers to us. We’re right on time. 

To hear more tips on how to ease into Q2, watch this week’s episode of “The Reset with Coach Tish.”

Letisha Bereola is a life coach who helps ambitious women overcome burnout and reach their career goals, so they feel great at work and happy at home. She’s a former Emmy-nominated TV news anchor, Podcast host of AUDACITY, and a speaker. Learn more at www.coachtish.co.

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