New Month, New Me? No Thanks. I Just Got Used to This One. 😂
Happy September!
Apparently, according to the internet, I was supposed to wake up this morning as an entirely new woman.
New month.
New routine.
New habits.
New goals.
New mindset.
New morning routine that probably begins at 5:00 AM for reasons I still don’t understand.
My refrigerator should be meal-prepped.
My house should be organized.
My water bottle should be full.
My planner should be color-coded.
I should have exercised, meditated, journaled, stretched, made my bed, answered every email I’ve ever received, and somehow already know exactly what I’m doing with the next 30 days.
Meanwhile, I’m over here like…
Wait. It’s September already? 😂
Can We Retire “New Month, New Me”?
I understand what people mean when they say it.
There’s something exciting about a fresh start.
I love a new planner.
I love making lists.
I love that little burst of motivation that comes when the calendar changes and suddenly I’m convinced that THIS is the month I’m going to get my entire life together.
And then approximately three business days later, I’m moving the same unfinished task onto tomorrow’s list for the fourth time. 😂
But lately I’ve been thinking about the whole:
New month. New me.
thing.
And…
Do I really need a new me?
Because I actually kind of like this one.
She’s a little chaotic sometimes.
She overthinks.
She occasionally has absolutely no idea what she’s doing.
She gets excited and makes plans that Future Her will later question.
She starts things.
Changes her mind.
Gets overwhelmed.
Tries again.
Laughs at herself.
Learns.
Grows.
And she’s gotten me this far.
I’m not sure I want to trade her in just because somebody flipped the calendar page.
I Can Want More Without Hating Where I Am
This is the part I think we sometimes miss.
I can want to grow without believing I’m currently failing.
I can want healthier habits without criticizing every habit I have now.
I can want to manage my time differently without calling myself lazy.
I can set goals without turning my current life into some kind of “before” picture.
I can look at September and think:
There are things I’d like to change.
Without adding:
Because the person I am right now isn’t good enough.
Those are two very different things.
And I’m trying to get better at recognizing the difference.
September Michelle Is Still August Michelle
Sorry to disappoint everyone.
There was no overnight transformation. 😂
September Michelle is still August Michelle.
Same personality.
Same laugh.
Same tendency to make ambitious to-do lists.
Same ability to walk into a room and immediately forget why she’s there.
Same person.
But not exactly the same.
Because August taught me things.
Every month does.
Every experience does.
Every mistake does.
Every time something doesn’t go according to plan, I learn something I didn’t know before.
Sometimes that lesson is deep and meaningful.
Sometimes the lesson is:
Maybe don’t schedule seven things for the same afternoon next time.
Personal growth comes in many forms. 😂
Maybe Growth Is Quieter Than We Think
We tend to picture growth as this dramatic transformation.
Before.
After.
Old life.
New life.
Old me.
New me.
But most of the growth I’ve experienced hasn’t happened like that.
It’s been much quieter.
It’s noticing something I used to tolerate and realizing I don’t want to anymore.
It’s saying no a little sooner.
It’s recognizing when I need rest.
It’s changing my mind.
It’s asking for help.
It’s catching myself in an old thought pattern.
It’s realizing I handled something differently than I would have a year ago.
It’s learning what matters to me.
It’s learning what doesn’t.
Nobody throws confetti when those things happen.
Most of the time, nobody even knows.
But I do.
And maybe that’s enough.
I’m Still Making September Goals
Don’t worry.
This is not my official announcement that I’m giving up on goals and spending September lying on the couch eating snacks.
Although I would like to formally reserve several evenings for exactly that. 😂
I have things I want to accomplish this month.
There are things I want to work on.
Things I want to finish.
Things I want to experience.
Things I want to do more consistently.
But I’m trying to approach those things differently.
Instead of:
What do I need to fix about myself this month?
I’m asking:
What would make my life feel better this month?
That’s a very different question.
Maybe I want more rest.
More laughter.
More time outside.
More time with people I love.
More creativity.
More organization.
More boundaries.
More confidence.
More quiet.
More adventure.
More doing things because they make me happy and not because they’re productive.
Maybe instead of building September around everything we’re doing wrong…
we can build it around what we want more of.
So Here’s My September Plan
No complete personality renovation.
No becoming a morning person overnight.
No pretending I’m going to have every area of my life perfectly organized by Friday.
No 97-step life reset.
I’m taking myself into September exactly as I am.
The good parts.
The messy parts.
The things I’m proud of.
The things I’m still working on.
The things I haven’t figured out yet.
All of it.
And we’ll grow from here.
So maybe this month we retire:
New month. New me.
And try something a little more realistic:
New month. Same me. Still growing.
Honestly?
That sounds like a lot less work. 😂❤️
⸻
Now I want to hear from you.
Forget the giant September goal list for a minute.
What’s ONE thing you want more of this month?
More rest?
More fun?
More confidence?
More time?
More peace?
More adventure?
Something completely different?
Tell me in the comments or reply and let me know.
Here’s to September.
Let’s see what happens. ❤️
— Michelle
Radiant Rise
Healing. Growing. Rising Together.
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