Just think, in “only” three and a half months we will be springing forward an hour in time again. We won’t be into the best of the Napa Valley weather for another couple months after that, but finally, there will be more life-affirming light. As tempting as it is to hibernate until then, create a plan to keep forward momentum on projects, make daily life as dry, warm and easy as possible, and grab opportunities for fun.
It can’t be stated enough that if you want to do something, you have got to put it on the calendar as a firm commitment. Give each day a structure ladder of must-do activities and fill in with all the things you would like to do. For me, must-do includes morning meditation and exercise, and sometimes that has to get started at 5AM if I have an especially busy day. Which means that bed time that night is also abnormally early and not a good evening to plan dinner with friends or a date night.
As you look at each day, be realistic about how long each activity will take and what your typical energy level would be. What is one errand or chore that you could let go? Look through the cupboards; maybe that big can of tuna fish and a couple cans of soup could be dinner and you could skip a run to the store for another day. Look through your bookshelves and maybe a novel you haven’t read in five years sounds appealing and you don’t have to go to the library, a bookstore or get something new online. In other words, where can you get by with what you already have at home?
Consider the weather. On colder, wetter days, everything takes longer. Allow more time so that you are not driving in a rush. Check out all your winter weather gear and fill in any gaps now. I finally bought a new raincoat after wearing the same (but great) Eddie Bauer raincoat for 15 years. The old coat was so serviceable, but I wanted something more stylish to make myself look a little less like a parking attendant on rainy days.
Check in with yourself. Quiet time in reflection, whether meditation or journaling, can help to process any winter blues. Common winter downers are boredom, procrastination, resentments, loneliness, holiday overwhelm and feelings of financial insecurities. Allow yourself to name the feeling and feel it, then consider how you might turn it around.
Getting into action is great, but it is most productive when we have clarity about what we are feeling. Procrastination? What about the project is repelling you? Is it really that bad? Have you identified one action you could take to move forward? How about boredom? For me, boredom occurs when I’m thinking about myself too much. The fastest way out is to do something for someone else. Who can you think of that could benefit from a call, a card, a hand with a chore?
List small indoor projects. Make a list of doable projects you could tackle inside where it’s warm and dry for the most miserable days. Have a mix of things like “reorganize the junk drawer,” “organize travel plans for spring vacation,” “address holiday cards,” and “start dehydrating pears,” so that you can choose one depending on your mood. Don’t set yourself up for failure by planning a garage cleanout during the coldest, wettest time of year.
Immerse yourself in learning or the arts. Check out classes such as those offered by Nimbus (nimbusarts.org) and sign up for something that interests you and that you would look forward to attending every week. Try language learning. Tim Ferriss, a multi-lingual productivity guru, says that it’s a fallacy that children learn languages more quickly than adults. With focus it is possible to become fluent in six months in about two hours a day. But even an hour a couple of times a week will improve your proficiency and eventually get you there.
Light, light, light! Put up holiday lights. Put out candles, real or battery operated. Get the fireplace going. We are moving out of the Chinese year of the Wood Snake, which is all about shedding old beliefs, old habits and unneeded possessions. Keep working on that with your meditation, journaling and indoor decluttering projects. On February 17 we move into the year of the Fire Horse, which is a transformative, action driven symbol and it’s tempting to rush to the next, new and shiny thing, but don’t neglect the shedding process this last month of 2025. The more of a vacuum you can create internally and externally, the more room you will have for new and exciting people, experiences and things to flow to you in 2026.