It’s officially Q4, which means we’re somehow approaching the end of another year. I’m not entirely sure how we got here, considering January feels like it was about three months ago, but here we are.

There’s something a little scary about the end of the year. Maybe it’s the realization that time is moving faster than we’d like, or the sudden pressure to make something of the weeks we have left. Either way, there’s always this feeling that we should be doing more.

More specifically, all the things we confidently told ourselves we’d do back in January.

I love a good list. I love setting goals, making plans and imagining all the things I want to accomplish. There’s something exciting about starting a new year with the idea that anything is possible. The problem is that January-me tends to be a little ambitious, and apparently assumes that the next twelve months will go exactly according to plan.

Spoiler alert: they rarely do.

I’ve been thinking about the goals I set for myself at the beginning of the year. Some I’ve accomplished, others I’ve made progress on, and a few have been sitting untouched for so long that I’m starting to question whether I even want to do them anymore.

For example, one of my goals this year was to go on five dates. And before you laugh at how modest that number is, I’d like to inform you that I’ve been on exactly zero. So unless my love life takes a rather dramatic turn in the next eight weeks, I think we can safely carry that one into 2027.

But jokes aside, I realized I was spending more time thinking about the things I hadn’t done than appreciating everything I actually had.

Think about everything you’ve experienced this year that wasn’t on your list. The unexpected opportunities, the people you’ve met, the places you’ve been, the decisions you made without knowing where they’d lead. Even the smaller things, like becoming more confident in yourself or learning to be okay with something that once bothered you.

There are probably things you’re proud of today that January-you wouldn’t have even thought to wish for.

And yet, when the end of the year rolls around, we tend to focus on what’s missing.

Suddenly, the goals we’ve been casually putting off for months become urgent. We have eight weeks to get our lives together, develop better habits, finish every project we’ve ever started and somehow become the person we envisioned ourselves being on January 1st.

All while buying Christmas presents, attending holiday parties and trying to figure out what to wear on New Year’s Eve.

I don’t think there’s anything wrong with wanting to finish the year on a high note. I’m all for making the most of the time we have left, especially if there’s something we’ve been putting off that we genuinely want to accomplish. But I also don’t think we need to treat December 31st like some kind of expiration date on our ambitions.

Not everything needs to happen this year.

And maybe that’s the part I’m learning to be more comfortable with. The idea that I can want something, work toward it and still be okay if it takes a little longer than I originally planned.

I think it’s easy to forget how much can change in twelve months. We grow, our priorities shift and sometimes the things we wanted at the beginning of the year no longer fit the lives we’re building. That doesn’t mean we’ve failed to follow through. It might just mean we’ve changed our minds, and I think we’re allowed to do that.

There’s also something to be said for simply enjoying where you are, rather than constantly thinking about where you should be next. I’m guilty of this myself. I’ll accomplish something I’ve been working toward, enjoy it for approximately five minutes and then immediately start thinking about the next thing.

It’s a habit I’m trying to break, because what’s the point of working toward a life you want if you’re too busy planning the next chapter to appreciate the one you’re in?

So, as we get closer to the end of the year, I’m trying not to look at my goals as a checklist that needs to be completed before the clock strikes midnight.

Some things got done. Some didn’t. And somewhere in between, an entire year of life happened.

There were experiences I didn’t anticipate, opportunities I couldn’t have planned for and moments that ended up meaning more to me than anything I could’ve written on a list.

And as for the goals I didn’t get around to? They’ll still be there in January, assuming I still want them.

For now, I’d rather enjoy the last little bit of the year than spend it racing against a deadline I made up myself.

Besides, I have a feeling January-me will have plenty of new ideas anyway.

Love, Laura