004—The finish line

We are approaching the end of the year, and—depending on how often life allows you to lift your eyes, look around, and reflect on the past and the future—you may find yourself thinking about what you have accomplished, what you have missed, and how far you have come. (Some may simply reflect on how little has happened… in which case, I suspect they won’t be too interested in what I have to say—unless, of course, they’re seeking inspiration to change that next year.)

For many—including myself during much of my past—the end of the year didn’t feel like it came at the “right time.”

In fact, it didn’t seem to come at any particular time at all.

It simply happened, somewhere along the way. Some goals remained unfinished and had to be shelved while much of the world took a holiday. Other accomplishments had been achieved months earlier, and by then they felt irrelevant—or, at the very least, no longer called for celebration.

The end of the year simply stood there, an obstacle in the middle of the road, needing to be circumnavigated with varying degrees of jest, depending on that year’s unique combination of effort and luck.

However, I’ve come to realize that…

“Leaving the 31st of December as something for the calendar to decide is a missed opportunity.”

There’s a much better way to approach it—one that I’ve experienced to varying degrees in the past but only managed to articulate and truly focus on this year.

This year, the end of the year feels like a finish line.

Alright, not exactly a mic-drop, but stick with me—it’s worth it, I promise.

When it comes to planning the year, I don’t think we can—or should—set rigid coordinates for where we want to be by the end of twelve months. Life simply doesn’t work that way. Navigating day by day with all our strength on the control stick—fighting against turbulence, headwinds (and sometimes even tailwinds), or areas of low pressure… you get the analogy—can feel exhausting and counterproductive.

It’s perfectly fine if we can’t predict exactly where we’ll land by year’s end. In fact, we don’t need to place too much weight on arriving at a specific goal by a specific time. That unpredictability is part of life’s marvel—the very thing that keeps it exciting, surprising, and endlessly new. The path only reveals itself as we walk it, and our finish line can shift in both nature and distance in an instant.

That said, with every passing year, I’ve come to realize just how much can happen in twelve months.

Think about it: most of us, looking back, can point to at least a few years in our lives where so much changed—perhaps even everything changed. And chances are, it wasn’t just one year like that; there were several.

The truth is, twelve months is a long time—long enough for life as we know it to completely transform.

Family can change. It can happen by choice—through marriage, divorce, having children, reconnecting with someone we haven’t spoken to in years, or deciding to cut ties with someone due to something they did or said. And sometimes, it happens by chance—losing someone important, life circumstances that take someone far away, or yes, even having children (which, as you can see, fits both categories…).

Health can change too. I’m not referring to the obvious, quick-fix medical interventions or drug-based treatments that can make a difference in a day but often only address existing conditions without altering the trajectory of long-term health. What I’m thinking of is the vast array of tools available today to drastically improve our well-being, prevent decline, and prolong our prime years. From supplements—both traditional ones like vitamins and minerals, to cutting-edge options like adaptogens and peptides—all under rapidly evolving research; from scientifically grounded workout protocols tailored to individual needs, to the increasing popularity of saunas, ice showers, and cold plunges. We also have mental health tools at our fingertips: meditation, non-sleep deep rest (Yoga Nidra), aromatherapy, music therapy, and the therapeutic use of journaling. In the realm of diet, we have an unprecedented body of knowledge to fuel our bodies with exactly what they need, along with supply chains that allow us to be deliberate about what, when, and how we consume. And then there are the greater access to functional lab tests and at-home devices that help monitor key health indicators. With enough discipline, study, and understanding, it’s possible to go from a mediocre shape for our age to our best shape ever—in just one year. Personally, I achieved this at forty-four.

Job circumstances can change as well. Sure, one can be promoted or, unfortunately, demoted. But in just twelve months, someone can transition to another company, take on a new role, or—what’s truly remarkable—switch to an entirely different industry. There are countless stories of people who decided to start fresh and, in just a few months, built a new life for themselves—sometimes even a life of abundance, not necessarily defined by wealth—whether through a new job, launching a lifestyle business, or embarking on a full-blown entrepreneurial pursuit.

I could go on, covering personal pursuits, arts, skills, lifestyle choices, and general circumstances such as relocating to new cities, countries, or even continents—all entirely achievable within those twelve months.

“The only true limit to what we can achieve in twelve months isn’t the brevity of time but our own resistance to change. It lies in our discomfort with challenging deeply held beliefs and stepping outside our comfort zones.”

It’s in the reluctance to confront the possibility that we may have been wrong about something—and the humility required to admit it and take steps to do things differently, to do them better.

As I began to think this way and embraced how much can happen in one year, I worked my introspection backward, tracing the months, weeks, and days needed to reach my goals. I started to realize that what truly matters is every single habit on my list—every recurring item on my agenda, even if it occupies just a small slice of time each week. It’s not just about the habit itself, but what it represents and its significance.

Twelve months is a long time, and habits compound quickly, and if we can become anyone we want to be in twelve months, we can start to inhabit that person today by choosing the right habits and creating the right routines for ourselves.

And that is a powerful realization.

Once I focused on this, I also realized that the reason this year’s December 31st feels so special is that I’ve essentially come to the exact end of a race made of 365 hurdles.

This year, I did not develop the virtuosity of Miles Davis, but I have been a trumpet player for 365 days, and have been progressing my skills (two steps ahead and one back) day after day. My photography won’t be featured next to Alex Webb’s in any gallery, but I have been a photographer for 365 days, and have been adding a little bit to my style each single week. I did not close a multi-million dollar exit for my start up, but I have been a entrepreneur for 365 days, and entrepreneurship has been giving back to me and making me a better person each day for 365 days.

It doesn’t matter if I’m exactly the person I set out to be when I made my 2024 agenda, or whether my life is exactly where I hoped it would be. What matters is that I’ve been working through each win, big or small, and each challenge, big or small, day by day for 365 days—clearly focused on building my new self.

That’s why the place I’ll stand on December 31st this year will undoubtedly be a finish line—one worth celebrating.

L.F