The colder seasons, when things go into hibernation, are an excellent time to inventory how we’re spending our time, treasures, and talents, and evaluate whether we need to recalibrate and balance our lives differently or let go.

Trees shed the trophies of recent glories and go dormant, dreaming of the life they want to surface in the spring. We plant bulbs in the soon-to-frost ground, trusting that during the rainy season they’ll offer us a sign of hope. As caretakers of the landscape around us, we prune away the dead wood so our beloved herbaceous friends don’t waste precious resources on things they no longer need.

A flower doesn’t need us to tell it when to bloom; it just knows. A tree would thrive long after we’re gone. But we know, from centuries of cultivation, how we prune, nourish, and nurture the things in our environment to help them thrive.

This season, let’s spend some time cultivating our inner gardens. You deserve to grow unfettered, too.

What do you need to let go of?

Dogs shed, snakes molt, and even we lose hair and skin from the outside and generate new cells to replace what’s been worn out internally. This incremental, continual change means that every seven to ten years, we’re a new person.

The only cells that do not regenerate or get replaced are the neurons in our cerebral cortex — these remain with us from birth to death.

The cerebral cortex is where we store our memories. It helps us process emotion. We can build new connections in it as we learn and develop habits. It’s where our ability to analyze and reason comes from.

We don’t naturally shed things we’ve learned, felt, thought, or done that are no longer helpful. That’s why it’s so vital that we create our own rituals for letting go and replacing hurtful patterns with healthier ones.

Your challenge: Let go of what no longer serves you

What does your day typically look like? How much time do you spend at work? In front of screens? Driving? Watching TV? Playing with kids or pets? Hanging out with friends? Making love? Eating/drinking/sleeping?

1. Create a list of everything you do in a day. Estimate the number of minutes or hours spent on each task.
2. Do this day by day until you’ve documented a full week’s worth of tasks.
3. Add up all the minutes and hours spent per task. Then, rank the tasks in descending order—from most to least time spent per week.
4. Review your list: What are you spending most of your life doing? What are you spending the least time on?

Are you spending most of your time on things that refresh, enliven, and rejuvenate you? Or are you spinning your wheels, wasting time on things that drain you and make you anxious?

If you’re carrying around a lot of dead weight in your schedule, spend some time thinking about ways you can let go of those things that are wasting your time. If you’re not spending enough time doing things you enjoy, see what trade-offs you could make to inject more joy and fun into your life.

Remember: You don’t have to do this alone. The people in your life or on your work teams can help. So, as you look at the list of bummer items, consider how you can outsource, delegate, ask for help, or pay people to tackle things you find unpleasant.

Change doesn’t come all at once. But if you take a few baby steps, before you know it, you’ll find yourself in a brand new place. Plant the seeds of where you want to be now, and by the time January rolls around, you’ll be well on your way to establishing newer, happier habits.

Let me know how it goes! Share your thoughts and experiences by commenting below or tagging @trulykristi on social channels. 🙂