We’ve all been there: that creeping sense of dread, inertia and, above all, lethargy-induced melancholy that goes hand in hand with getting our knees back under our desks after Christmas.
Indeed, the New Year blues can overshadow much of January, and the causes are many and various. We cannot – to pick a glaring example – rule out the weather. Nor the seemingly interminable wait for January’s wages to come in as we battle the financial side effects of festive spending. But there are other, more personal, factors at work here, too.
How often have you heard your colleagues groan out of the corners of their mouths that they need another holiday to recover from Christmas? For many professionals, the festive ‘break’ can be every bit as hectic as the run-up to it, with loads of plates to keep spinning amid a packed schedule of appointments, errands, childcare and culinary feats.
Then there are the demands we place upon ourselves once the tree’s down the tip and the tinsel’s packed away: that this is going the be the year we give up X, Y or Z, or become more assertive, or file more job applications, or nail that long-cherished personal goal that will make us feel so much better, worthier and more validated as individuals.
And that’s all before we even think about the nitty-gritty of work – which can be chilling enough in itself. Some professionals may be commencing large-scale, challenging projects that feel like mountains in their minds. Others may be picking up the threads of work they couldn’t close out by the end of December, with all the related stresses spilling over into January. And more than a few may be simply hacked off with their jobs altogether. In any combination, those factors will serve up a queasy cocktail of severe reluctance and rabbit-in-the-headlights syndrome.
How, then, should we fight back against the New Year blues? For some practical ideas, we sought out the insights of wellbeing coach Emily Brinnand, and executive coach Dr Michael Drayton – author of Anti-burnout: How to Create a Psychologically Safe and High-performance Organisation.
But before we explore the New Year watershed – when the world is supposed to feel all shiny and new, but so often doesn’t – let’s start with a few thoughts on the Christmas period itself, which you can tuck behind your ear for December 2022…
In many respects, the malaise that descends on us in the New Year has its roots in issues that can take the wind out of our sails over Christmas – leaving us ill-prepared for the fresh start. “This may sound quite ‘worky’ and managerial,” says Brinnand, “but it’s really important to set priorities for what you think you must do during the holiday.”
She explains: “It’s all too easy to get sucked into a culture of ‘busy-ness’ – mainly because we feel obliged to do things that will please other people. We also end up comparing ourselves to our peers, and get bogged down in a trench war over who can round up the best gifts, cook the best food and so on.
“However, that creates lots of stress and anxiety. So, as much as it may sound like some kind of management strategy, rather than something related to your personal time, it’s vital to put some thought and focus into prioritisation.”
In Brinnand’s view, we should shuffle our wish list of yuletide tasks into three categories:
That third category, Brinnand points out, can be particularly helpful. “People can get very burnt out over Christmas,” she notes, “and that’s often because we get obsessed with an image of perfection that’s fed to us not just by other people, but by advertising.”
Rather than go down that slippery slope, she says: “Use the process of deleting tasks as a way of zeroing in on what you actually want Christmas to look like. Think about questions such as: What do I want out of Christmas? Which small things do I want to gain? How do I want to feel? And how do I want to make others feel? Having that positive intention will help you to relieve stress, and prevent you from overburdening yourself. There’s a world of difference between being a Scrooge and tending to a simple bit of self-care.”
On the other side of Christmas, Drayton notes, it is not necessarily helpful to devote your resolutions to large-scale, sweeping changes. “When people are down in the dumps in the New Year,” he says, “it’s often because they feel they’re lacking control over their own lives. So, think about which small changes you can make in January and February to make your life not so much perfect, as tolerable – or even pleasant.”
He explains: “One reason you may be feeling low is because you’re fed up with answering emails late at night, or racking up excessive screen time, and are dreading going back to that. So, make resolutions about smaller stuff. Perhaps you can commit to going for a walk for half an hour every day – or to switching off your phone at six o’clock and putting work completely aside. Or you may even have a hobby that you can turn your attention to for half an hour at the end of your working day – such as photography, poetry or knitting – to separate work from your personal time and enable you to switch off.”
Drayton urges: “Try and envisage what you want life to look like, and then line up a set of small measures against the things that are making you unhappy, so you can gradually chip away at them. It doesn’t have to be about dramatic gestures: when you put together these small measures, they’ll give you the basis of a plan. And a plan will help you regain control.”
Another effective mind-management technique, Drayton points out, is to focus on all the driving forces that made you want your job in the first place: “What first attracted you to your profession? Why do you find it meaningful, interesting and important? That original sense of meaning and purpose can all too often get lost or smothered in day-to-day drudgery and bureaucracy. So, cast your mind back to that core spark of inspiration that engaged you with your work, and think about how to find it in the here and now.”
He recalls: “Last year, I spoke to a group of airline pilots. Now, I don’t know about you, but when I think about airline pilots, it seems like they lead quite a glamorous life – my mind conjures up that image of Leonardo DiCaprio waltzing around with flight attendants in Catch Me If You Can. But let me clarify that they are some of the most depressed and cynical professionals I’ve ever met – and cynicism is a major red flag for burnout.”
Drayton continues: “One of the things I asked those pilots to do is to think about this very important, responsible job that they have – which they probably fantasised about at great length when they were younger – and celebrate the fact that they made it.
“There may well be lots of issues with the day-to-day minutiae of their employment that make them feel fed up here and there. But fundamentally, they’re doing something they once dreamt of, and have chalked up extensive careers. There must still be a kernel of inspiration in there somewhere.”
Brinnand similarly advocates a foundation of small, everyday steps – and doesn’t underestimate the difficulties of sticking to them. “Very often,” she says, “all these little things that we know are good for us can be the hardest to maintain.
“But when we go out for these half-hour walks, or do other bits of regular exercise, we’re shifting energy and endorphins around our bodies and putting ourselves in a better state of mind to approach the tasks that we may not want to do.”
One technique that Brinnand supports is morning pages: three sides of unstructured writing as soon as you wake up, as popularised by educator and self-styled ‘queen of change’ Julia Cameron in her seminal book The Artist’s Way.
“If you’re psychologically spilling your thoughts out in writing,” she explains, “you’re visibly moving them out of your mind and on to paper. By processing your thoughts in that fashion, you’re finding your way to a place where you can say, ‘OK, I’ve relieved my brain from that energy and pressure – now I can start the day with a clear head.’ You’re putting that internal clutter somewhere else.”
She notes: “At heart, these sorts of steps are about tapping into what you value – and making sure that one of the things you value most is feeling well.”
Drayton adds: “When people are pondering the future, they tend to see everything in extremes – either, ‘Oh, it’s going to be awful,’ or ‘Here comes the new me – it’s going to be fantastic.’ But it’s important to bear in mind that life is rarely, if ever, that categorical. It’s a mixture of good and bad that fluctuates all the time. Everything is on a continuum.”
Matt Packer is a freelance business, finance and leadership journalist
