Keeping Your January Goals & The Truth About Manifestation
Welcome January. A new year, a “fresh start,” a time to pursue new goals, habits, and mindset shifts. In reality, it’ s kind of funny how a new year can serve as a mark for an entire life reset when we all really have the capacity to create this shift any day we choose to.
I find that people are typically divided into 2 categories
1.) the ones who LOVE new years and heavily lean into this time of reflection
2.) the anti-new years individuals who think it’s just another year where people will set goals that they will keep for 2 weeks and then return to old patterns.
My opinion? I absolutely love reflection and think that it can and should be done at any time of the year you feel called to ( I also tend to treat September like a mini new year). After all, if a fresh year sparks your drive to change, than embrace it!
But, I also have been on the other side where I have set numerous goals that I just couldn’t stick to. Waking up at 5:30am, working out daily, eating clean, attempting to become a runner…. the list goes on.
In fact, studies shows that only 9% of people actually keep their resolutions…
So lets talk about how to actually make your new habits stick and the importance of the way you set your intentions into new year. This framework totally changed the way I chose to embody my new manifestations and habits.
1.) Setting your Manifestations and Goals
In today’s world, it has never been easier to dive into the rabbit hole of goal setting. Just open Pinterest and 10 minutes later you have already have 100 photos to put onto your vision board.
You open instagram, you see the body you want, the “aesthetic” you envision for your life, everyone running marathons, and suddenly you have found the goal you want to achieve.
This isn’t to say these aren’t legitimate goals or that these platforms are not good uses of inspiration but where is the WHY?
The truth is… I worry that in Westernized societies, we’ve started to lose the real meaning of “manifestation.” Manifestation isn’t about the house, the money, the body, or external desires. Somewhere along the way, we developed the belief that we can manifest anything we want and it has become fixated on the outside world rather than the inner one.
To me, manifestation is a tool for consciousness. It’s about realizing that you were always the manifestation you thought you needed to create, you just had layers that kept you from seeing it.
Even when you manifest internal qualities like peace, love, happiness, or abundance, it’s still a form of desire, but it’s a higher-level desire. A desire that goes beyond the superficial and helps you dissolve the belief that you aren’t already peace, love, or happiness. Through this process, you come to the realization that you were, in fact, always your manifestation, from the very beginning (I know this sounds confusing).
We often don’t realize that many of our intentions, goals, and manifestations come from our own insecurities or fears. And yes, it’s uncomfortable to admit this, but that’s exactly the point. Manifestation invites us to pause, reflect, and truly understand why we want to create change.
That fit body you want to achieve: is it rooted in the belief that you must look a certain way to be worthy, or in a deeper intention to care for your body so it can support you for years to come?
Cleaning up your diet or cutting alcohol: are you doing it to change your appearance, or to nourish your body in a way that supports your energy, mood, and overall well-being?
A raise or promotion at work: is it about the validation and status that more money brings, or the freedom and stability that allow you to live aligned with your values, support your nervous system, and create the life you truly want?
In our fast-paced world, we’ve become so removed from the intentions behind goal-setting that we often forget its original purpose: to reconnect with ourselves.
When setting your goals or intentions, start by asking yourself these three questions:
What is the goal you want to achieve?
Is there a chance this goal is coming from an insecurity?
How does this goal align with highest version of myself that I am becoming?
When we manifest from an internal place, rooted in love instead of insecurity, we naturally attract the opportunities, abundance, and life we are meant for.
2.) To add something new, you must remove something old
It’s SO easy to think about all the things we want to add to our lives, but we need to be realistic with our time. Trust me, I’ve learned this the hard way. If there were a medal for taking on too many things at once and doing them half-effectively… I’d definitely be in first place.
Like any form of budgeting, if you’re trying to increase something, you have to decide what you’ll remove. And please do not make it at the expense of your sleep!
Want higher savings? Great! Where can you spend less?
Training for a marathon? Amazing! You’ll need to wake up an hour earlier, which means going to bed earlier… and probably skipping that series you’re bingeing.
Starting a new business? Awesome! You might need to say no to Friday nights out to create the space you need after your 9–5.
Be realistic with yourself. Don’t try to take on too many new goals or fill every hour of everyday. Life still happens, things will come up, so allow yourself to be present and be intentional with what you choose add and take away in order to create sustainable goals.
3.) Consistency over Perfection
How many times have you told yourself, “I’ll just start Monday” because you caved for that slice of pizza? Or “Tomorrow is a fresh start” because you overslept by 30 minutes? I know I’ve been there too.
In Atomic Habits, James Clear explains that real transformation doesn’t come from dramatic breakthroughs, it comes from small, consistent habits that compound over time.
Improving by just 1% each day doesn’t simply add progress, it multiplies it. Each small choice builds on the last. Over a year, those tiny improvements don’t make you a little better… they create exponential growth, roughly 37 times better than where you started.
On the flip side, doing nothing rarely feels harmful in the moment. Skipping a workout, putting off a habit, promising you’ll start tomorrow, inaction compounds too. Staying at 1.00 every day keeps you exactly where you are: same habits, same outcomes, same identity.
The shift isn’t about being perfect.
It’s about choosing to start, again and again, even when it’s messy.
Do the workout, even if it’s just 30 minutes instead of 60. Enjoy the glass of wine on the Friday night, but skip it on Saturday. Spent an hour more than you intended on your phone? Ok, your aware… now go put it down and go outside.
Be kind to yourself. You wouldn’t expect to run a marathon in a week, you need time to train. Science shows that consistency beats perfection every time.
4.) Allow room for Balance and Error
Perfection isn’t the goal, and that means mistakes will happen! The sooner you accept that you’re human (sorry, not superman), the more realistic you can be with your goals and the habits that actually lead to success.
Your goals shouldn’t steal your joy. Trying to eat healthier? Enjoy that treat when you want it, just not every day. That 80/20 rule exists for a reason. Training for a half marathon? You don’t need to run every single day. Rest days, easy runs, and one long run a week are what make running feel doable, especially at the start.
Life gets messy. Mistakes happen. We get sick. Things come up. But try not to skip two days in a row. One missed day is an accident. Two? That’s how old habits creep back in.
Most importantly, remember why you set this goal in the first place. Let it connect you to the highest version of yourself and make sure you pause to notice and enjoy the growth that happens along the way.
New habits take time, usually 21 to 45 days to start feeling natural. The beginning might feel hard, messy, or awkward, and that’s okay. This is a process, not a race. Make it something you want to do, something you do for you, and allow yourself to find joy in the journey.
Wishing you a great start to 2026!
Xo.
Cass
P.S. (If you spot a spelling mistake, even with spellcheck, let’s call it character… it was written from the heart, not perfection)