February sucks. Here's how we'll get through it.
My birthday is in February and I still agree it's the worst month of the YEAR
February sucks.
Fact? No. But also yes.
The past few weeks have hit hard - I know I’m not the only one when I say it’s just felt “off”. There’s nothing wrong, no big struggle being dealt with, nothing to point at, jump up and say “Oh, that’s it! That’s why I’m sad.”
No, it’s the much smaller stuff - the stuff that we don’t realize impacts us, so slowly builds and builds and builds…
Waking up to grey skies every day.
Trying to go for a wellness walk and trudging around the snow (fun the first time, frustrating the fifth).
Having your only activity outside of work being going to the gym.
Staying inside all day (initially cozy, now boring).
And yes, these are minuscule, first world problems. But they’re still problems. And this is my Substack so I get to complain about what’s affecting me!
Sigh. But my friends, I didn’t come on here to complain (I kind of did).
No, I came in here to tell you that I have found the solution - a solution to beating the winter blues - something temporary that will push us through this final spout of winter and into the lovely spring, flowers, and sunshine!
You see, the root cause of this general “down” feeling all comes down to the fact that we’re experiencing a lack of change of routine. Every day is feeling more and more like groundhog day, bound to be repeated the next morning. And, as we’ve already discovered, these days aren’t fun - they’re grey, cold, miserable, and boring.
So, in order to break the cycle, we need to break the routine, add some spice into our days!
I’m talking projects, projects, then more projects!
The process is easy - think of something you’ve wanted to do for a while or something that just feels fun, and do it.
That’s it, that’s all we need to do here folks.
To provide a few examples, here’s a list of projects I’ve recently undertaken and how I’ve reframed each of them into a “fun, exciting project to beat the winter blues!”
Project 1: Buy Running Shoes — Sounds boring, right? Well, it’s not! This project includes a cool outfit, comfortable (but fashionable, obviously…We’re not losing our minds here people!) walking shoes, headphones, your favorite podcast, and a 25-minute walk to and from the shoe store. Unintentional perk: it was sunny! Goodbye winter blues for a few hours!
(One thing I didn’t account for was the fact that it’s impossible for me to make decisions on my own so I naturally felt pressured, bought a pair of shoes that felt slightly off, and now am going to need to return them…(Wait, did I just create another project?!))
Project 2: Buy + Mount Prints for Wall: Yes, I have lived in Toronto for 3+ years and have never decorated my walls. Let’s kindly skip over that embarrassing fact and look at this new, fun project! This wonderful project includes a browse on Etsy to find what I like to call “cool-girl-prints” (CGP) and a walk to your local print shop that is the size of a shoe box but full of good vibes to get the perfect decorations for your walls. This project not only built my confidence (I’m not an artsy person at all), but created the long-lasting home-y-ness that comes with a cozy space.
Project 3: Vision Board: How could I make a project list without sharing the most obvious, go-to, hot-girl project? A vision board! Spend some time carousing Pinterest to find all the clues to your dream life - travel, love, fun, dancing, career, abundance - everything you could ever want. This project pulls you out of your sad blues and into your future state, where everything is GOOD (hopefully).
(Bonus Point: Print the vision board out and mount it on the wall - we now know how to mount things, let’s use it baby!)
It’s hard to get projects better than those three listed, but if you need some more inspo, here’s a few more:
Clean out your closet - not necessarily something to look forward to per say, but will sure feel good when it’s done!
Buy yourself a fun drink or a fun desert - you deserve it because you’re alive.
Whenever you see a sliver of the sun - GO OUTSIDE. Walk and take it in. Stare directly at the sun for all I care - it will be going away at 5:45pm!
What did you put on your vision board?! Start making that happen girlfriend!
We’re all on the same page now - February SUCKS. I hope this can make it slightly better. If not…It’s almost over so dw.
Agreed. Fun projects are the perfect way to break the winter cycle of monotony. My current project - writing my first song! Instrumentals are almost done, lyrics are still escaping me...