What To Do In January To Benefit You For The Rest Of The Year

Would you look at that? We’re already speeding into January! After the sparkles, celebrations, and champagne bubbles of New Year’s Eve it’s hard not to feel the chilling blast of, well, the rest of January, that brings us crashing back down to earth.

And, as usual, we tend to put pressure on ourselves to emerge from the excesses of the festive season and transform into newer, better, more virtuous versions of ourselves. Suffice to say, for many of us it is easier said than done…

How January Became the ‘New Year’

Of course, while calendars and time management are all systems put in place for humans to better understand the changes in daylight and the turn of the seasons, they are not the be-all and end-all. But, they are the chosen system most of the globe runs on, and the the ‘new year, new me’ culture of January is certainly persuasive. If the new year began in the summer it would be far easier to get motivated — brighter mornings to jump-start you out of bed for example.

We have ancient Roman king Numa Pompilious to thank for making the greyest month the first in the calendar. He manoeuvred the new year from spring-time March to drizzly, chilly January. Thanks Numa! 

So, if the agreed new year in January doesn’t match your vibe, feel free to skip its invented obligations. You can turn over your new leaves in May when the fresh green leaves are actually on the trees! Or in October when they start to glow orange and fall off (easier to turn!) Just don’t let the calendar get you down…

However, as we said, January culture is persuasive. And to be honest, it’s never a bad time to turn over some new leaves — there’s no time like the present — and presently it is January! And, as we know how hard it is, we’ve decided to share some tips, tricks, encouragement and magical thinking to help you stay on track. Of course these tips are not restricted to January, but they will definitely help you to get through these last couple of winter months before spring shows up…

Remember To Look Back, As Well As Forward

The Roman god Janus (who the month of January is named after) has two faces — one looking forward and one looking back. He is the god of beginnings and endings, of doorways and thresholds, time and transitions. This January why not locate yourself in the present by reflecting back on the past year? What did you achieve? What do you wish had been different? Who did you say hello to? And who did you say goodbye to? You could even note down 5 things that you learned that you want to take with you into the new year. 

But as Janus reminds us, we cannot live in the past. We must also be looking forward to the incoming year. What do we want to achieve? What we want to learn? How do we identify our hopes and fears? Writing these things down can become a useful and enriching ritual.

While looking both ways, we remember that our past choices and future dreams all come together to create our present self. The most important version of the self! We must look both back and forward to see where we’ve come from and where we want to go, but we must also live in the moment. Use this cold month to locate yourself, without distraction. 

Make ‘Soft’ Resolutions

If you’ve gotta make resolutions, then make them realistic — something you can actually achieve! Things that you don’t dread actually doing. Crazy thought, huh? Little positive changes can be great for our overall state of mind. Setting habits and intentions rather than goals are the order of the day. Sustainable changes that will last past the end of this month. 

Say you want to get more active — that’s a goal to last a lifetime, not just a January. Hitting the gym, with weight and stamina goals is great but it’s not for everyone. If the gym bunny life is not for you, you can instead make a soft resolution. 

For example, schedule a weekly walk around the park with a good friend — that way you have the incentive of socialising whilst exercising. Both catching up with a friend and moving your body releases endorphins. It’s two birds, one stone.

Another way to trick yourself into getting active is to visit more cultural institutions. Ever noticed how tired you feel after visiting a museum? Those places are big! You can do a load of walking without even realizing. And, best of all — you learn a ton of stuff! Again, two birds, one stone! (and who ever learnt anything on a treadmill?)

You see, if you think outside the box a bit, you can make the resolutions work for you, rather than the other way round…

Microdosing Can Work Wonders

Introducing a microdosing routine into your life this year can help you make changes in a multitude of ways. 2024 was a bumper year for psychedelics, especially psilocybin, currently being lauded for its mental health healing powers, from depression to social anxiety. Of course starting a microdosing routine at any point is a good idea, but there are a few reasons why this January it could be your greatest decision of all. 

Microdosing Helps You To Keep Your ‘Resolutions’

Nope, it’s not too good to be true! Magic truffles can actually help you to keep your intentions / resolutions. One of the amazing things that psilocybin, the psychoactive compound in truffles, does, is that it can temporarily quieten the Default Mode Network (DMN) in our brains. The DMN is involved in the building of our self image, of introspection and imagining future scenarios. However, sometimes it can prevent us from making changes, as it strives to keep our image of ourselves constant. This can land us in a negative feedback loop if that image is not what we want to see. 

The DMN can definitely be an obstacle to keeping your new year’s intentions. For example, if you have internalised the idea that you are not a healthy person, your DMN will reinforce that — making it harder for you to alter your habits. You end up automatically thinking yourself out of making the change. 

By temporarily relaxing the DMN, psilocybin makes it possible for you to rewire your brain into new thinking patterns. You just have to focus on your intentions while this is happening. When you microdose, focus on your intentions beforehand. You can do it!

Microdosing is a Tool For Change

Those classic resolutions? The big ones you try and achieve every year? Turns out microdosing magic truffles can help with them too! Studies have shown that psilocybin can help with:

• Quitting smoking
• Reducing alcohol intake 
• Maintaining a healthy body 
• Being more creative 

Give Yourself A Much-Needed Boost

Even if you don’t have a specific intention or goal in mind, microdosing psilocybin can improve your quality of life in the new year. Increasing your focus, motivation, general well being and even your compassion — it’s the easiest resolution you’ll ever keep. Learn exactly how easy with our microdosing guide, and get started today!