Fans of plans, thanks for sticking with me as I’ve indulged in reflections on the twilight of my thirties for the past few weeks in the letters to my younger self series. One of my (many!) fervent philosophies is that all things will improve with time, so you’ll be pleased to learn that the passage of time has intervened and, since I’m forty tomorrow, subsequent blogs will not be Pascoe-themed (although of course, they will be Pascoe-shaped).

I ended my prelude to this blog by promising that today, I would help you reflect on where you were and where you wanted to be. Since corona-flavoured 2021 may not have panned out to be quite all you hoped, I am returning to classic Philosopher-In-Residence quirk to assist us all with coping with the final seven days of this year.

IT’S A NUMBERS GAME

25 = Help control negativity by limiting yourself to 25 swear-filled thoughts about how your family is driving you nuts/isn’t like other people’s/how you wish you had family around you at Xmas. The grass isn’t greener this time of year, it’s a mud-dappled grey.

26 = Begin to prep for the New Year nutrition and cope with the grinding boredom of pleasantries/newly-introduced covid-restrictions by eating 26 tiny pieces of turkey over the course of the day, each with a different accompaniment. Post the best one on social media using the hashtag #TitchyTurkey.

27 = It’s a bank holiday! Celebrate by doing something financial – buy 27 scratchcards/have 27 games of bingo/set yourself a savings goal of 27 days of putting change in a jar and what you will treat yourself to at the end.

28 = It’s another bank holiday! Now it’s time to get a headstart on your New Year fitness/escape the clamour/loneliness of home and take a 28 minute walk, run or roll around your local area. Reflect on how exciting it will be to do this TWICE and still have time to wash your hands when we are back in lockdown and only permitted to leave the house for an hour of daily exercise.

29 = Everyone loves Twixmas but no-one quite knows what to do. Embrace this state of flux by making yourself a list of 29 things you are going to do in 2022 – books to read, albums to revisit, people to catch up with, hobbies to acquire.

30 = Take the pressure off 2022 and instead of making a few life-changing grand New Year’s resolutions that you probably won’t keep, make yourself a Top 30 of things to do to get yourself through January and help have that small daily boost the advent calendar was giving you this month. Little, affordable or free things like your favourite drink, 5 minutes of calm to listen to a song you love, 10 minutes looking through an old photo album that means a lot, you get the idea.

31 = United Plandom, you are truly privileged. Not everyone can say that they have lived through the most uninspiring, doom-clad New Year’s Eve of all time, but you can! Pass the time of pretending you’re in the pub when actually you’re in your house (lockdown assuming), or use the early bit of pub time (earnest rather than incoherent) to create a 31 word poem/limerick/haiku/silly rhyme summing up your 2021.

Do drop us a line or tag us on social media if you do any of these things.

Seasons Greetings from all at Happy Planning HQ and we will see you in 2022.

Next fortnight, as we begin a brave new year, I’ll be musing On Mettle. Bring your big non-binary pants and join me.

Please get in touch with any particular aspects of this topic you’d like me to write about.

In the meantime,

Happy Planning

PS If you want some other free tips for your business life, check out the Working Well blog – out fortnightly on Wednesdays, courtesy of Make Me A Plan’s Productivity Expert, Penny Le Kelly. Browse the latest edition here: https://www.makemeaplan.com/news/motivational-productivity-quotes/