No Back to School for Me This Year

I've been feeling weird... unsettled, maybe? I couldn't put my finger on it. I knew it wasn't only the impact of things happening in the world; it was like my rhythm was off.

Then I realized what it was: on Facebook, I saw photos of kids starting school.

Oh yea....there is no back-to-school for me this year.

I started pre-school in 1979. Except for the first two autumns of Ethan's life, I have had a back-to-school experience and tradition for the past 47 years. First as a student, then an elementary school teacher, and finally a mom of a student.

And now I don't. No wonder I feel out of sorts.

Back to school always felt like my "New Year" more than January 1st. Back to school meant a change in schedules and routines, a shift from the energy of summer into gearing up for a brand new school year as we head into my favorite season, fall. New clothes and new notebooks. It represented a sense of anticipation, hope, and a clean slate.

Research on the "fresh start effect" backs this up: people are more motivated to pursue goals and shift habits at a temporal landmark like a birthday or the start of a new month or week. In one study, people were 47% more likely to act on a new goal at the start of a semester than at other points in the year. A landmark date lets you separate from the past and start fresh.

Since I don't have an official back-to-school date this year, I get to choose one, and so can you.

Instead of buying new notebooks and getting ready for the new school year, I'm organizing and clearing out two small areas of my house that have been nagging at me. A reset for my space.

Instead of setting a vision for the semester or school year, I'm picking one focus for each of the next three months, and a word or phrase to anchor me to it. I'm renaming "back to school" to something that's actually mine, like back to self, back to intention, or back to creativity. A reset for my focus.

I'm upgrading my morning and evening routines to ones that serve a busier fall calendar and my conference season. A reset for my time.

Back to school was never really about school. It was always about permission to reset and refocus with a new beginning. Recognizing that took the sadness and nostalgia out of it and gave me the agency to do it for myself in this new phase of life. A temporal landmark is a tool anyone can use. Just pick a date that means something to you, and let it be your fresh start.

If you picked your own back-to-school or fresh start date this year, what would you want to reset?  Your space, your focus, your time, or something else?

Hit reply and let me know what you land on. I read every one.

Here's to new beginnings, however we mark them.