The Fresh Start Effect

Have you felt it? The shift in your energy? The feeling inside you that craves something new and exciting?

The change of season is more than just a temperature shift. Although sure, the light is changing, the leaves are now falling and you're probably reaching for pieces in your wardrobe that you haven’t seen in months, but the change of season is more than just optics.

It's creating a shift inside you.

This feeling, this invisible surge of energy can be subtle, or it can be palpable.

It’s called the Fresh Start Effect, and it’s an incredibly potent time to move towards that which you are seeking to create.

This psychological phenomenon creates a surge of motivation in humans. It’s marked by a temporal landmark, or a moment that feels like a “new beginning”. 

Think New Year, birthday, new job or moving house.

These moments all have something in common: they create a mental separation between your “old self” and your “new self”. The overwhelming felt experience is that of newness, of starting fresh. And it’s an incredibly potent time for behaviour change.

Most of the time we wait for motivation. Like we will get struck in the face by it at random, and suddenly we’ll feel like taking action.

But the fresh start effect says “use the momentum that already exists!”

And so the seasonal change you’re feeling right now is basically a built-in reset button. You don’t have to force it.

So, how do you use it?

Start by asking yourself some simple, identity stretching questions:

“Who do I want to be this season?”

“What would feel like an exciting space to play in right now?”

“What am I ready to leave behind from the season that has passed?”

Perhaps these questions align with your existing goals, and breathe life back into them. Goals are just words until we tie our feelings and identity to them. Our WHY.

So why not leverage this time of transition to your advantage?

Get out in nature, crunch the fallen leaves under your feet. Feel the crisp autumnal air on your face and breathe in the change in smells in the air. Allow your body to fully embrace the shift of season, and use this energy to power you toward your goals.

Because humans have been responding to the seasons for millennia.

This urge to move is in our DNA...

My challenge to you:

Pick something that you’ve been working on and start taking action this month. Get clear on your why, your drivers, and then take action. Make a plan. And then leverage the heck out of the fresh start effect.

And, if you want some support and cheerleading on your journey, reach out and book an introductory call with me. I love nothing more than connecting people with what they truly want, and helping them to go after it with intention and support.