2026 Fresh Start Energy: How to Create It Before January Arrives
- Patricia Abarte
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
As I’m recording this, it’s the very first of December — my favourite month of the year — and also my very last episode from my living room in The Hague for a while. In just a few days I’ll be starting my Workation across the Americas: an event in Arizona, a soul-nourishing stay in Sedona, a wedding in El Salvador, and two months in Mexico City.
Life feels exciting, chaotic, expansive and… a little unclear. Because for the first time in years, I don’t have a clear theme for the upcoming year.
And you know what? That’s okay.
But it also reminded me of something important: we often wait for January to magically deliver clarity, motivation, alignment, or discipline — as if the calendar reset at midnight is a powerful spell that wipes away overwhelm and brings us a brand-new self.
It doesn’t.
A fresh start isn’t something you wait for. It’s something you create — and fresh start energy can begin long before January 1st.
So today, I want to share five simple things you can start doing this month — yes, in the middle of the chaos that is December — to arrive in January already feeling lighter, clear, grounded, and ready for your next chapter.
Listen to the episode here:
Timestamps:
07:37 - Reflection 1: Why Busy Expats Can't Hear Their Inner Voice
09:15 - Creating Space for Intuition While Living Abroad
14:10 - Reflection 2: How the Right Room Accelerates Expat Growth
15:40 - Finding Like-Minded International Communities
18:53 - Reflection 3: Building Your Inner Home as a Global Citizen
21:25 - The Expat Chameleon Effect Across Cultures
24:11 - Reflection 4: Overcoming Fear of Visibility as an Expat
30:01 - Saying Yes Before You Feel Ready
34:39 - Reflection 5: Living Your Expat Vision in the Present Moment
37:39 - Celebrating Current Achievements vs Focusing on Gaps
Create Micro-Moments of Space Every Single Day
December is busy for almost all of us — final deadlines, work events, travel, family expectations, social obligations. When your calendar is overflowing, your mind becomes crowded too.
But clarity cannot land in a cluttered system.
Micro-space is the antidote — and it’s one of the fastest ways to create fresh start energy in real time.
Think:
5 minutes of silence
a short walk without your phone
clearing one surface
a few deep breaths with your eyes closed
saying “no” to one invitation
Your body needs space before your mind can think clearly. These tiny pauses create internal room for answers to rise.
Get Honest With Yourself Now, Not Later
Most people postpone important inner questions until “after the holidays” or “when things calm down.” But here’s the truth:
January is never calmer.
And clarity doesn’t come from having more time — it comes from being willing to look inward. If you want fresh start energy in January, practice honesty in December.
Start asking yourself:
What’s not working anymore?
What am I pretending I don’t know?
What wants to end before the new year begins?
What decision have I delayed all year?
Honesty is a muscle. Start exercising it now.
Declutter the Emotional Noise
We don’t enter January with a clean slate simply because the date changes. We drag our emotional clutter with us — the expectations, the shoulds, the pressure, the disappointments, the identity confusion, the unresolved fears.
Imagine trying to redecorate a house without removing any of the old furniture.
The same applies to your life.
If you want real fresh start energy, ask yourself:What am I refusing to carry into 2026?
Let something go — a belief, a habit, a relationship pattern, a guilt, a pressure, a dream that isn’t yours. Make space for the new to come in.
Start Dreaming Again (Without Shrinking Your Desires)
We all have secret dreams — the bakery, the yoga teacher training, the country that keeps calling our name. But most of us shut them down before they even take shape.
Your desires deserve to breathe — and fresh start energy often begins the moment you stop dismissing what you truly want.
Allow yourself to ask:
What if it is possible?
What if this dream is here for a reason?
What if I’m allowed to want more?
And then take it one layer deeper:Who do I want to be next year?
Because your goals require a version of you who can hold them.
Start Building the Habits You’ll Want in January
Most people wait until Jan 1st to start fresh habits… and by February, the gyms are empty again.
Not you.
If you want to be someone who works out, journals, sleeps well, writes, cooks, saves money, or starts a business — begin now. This is how you build fresh start energy through momentum, not pressure.
You don’t need perfection. You just need evidence:
“I’m already someone who does this.”
A 20-Second Practice to End This Year Intentionally
If you can, close your eyes for a moment.
Picture yourself on January 1st (or January 5th), feeling lighter, clearer, more grounded — the version of you who has already let something go and created fresh start energy on purpose.
Now ask:
What did December-me choose to release so I could feel this way?
Whatever came up? That’s your next step.
Introducing: The Space — Cabin Edition
A DIY solo retreat for expats craving a powerful end-of-year reset.
For the first time ever, I’m sharing the exact tools, rituals, reflection prompts and audios I use in my own annual retreat — the one I rely on every year to close the chapter and intentionally start the next.
Inside The Space you’ll find:
A 2-day guided retreat you can do anywhere
Day 1: The Fireplace (reflect, release, clear)
Day 2: The Horizon (dream, prioritize, plan)
Guided audios + rituals
Lifetime access (so you can repeat it every year!)
People in Spain, the US, the Netherlands, Eastern Europe and even Indonesia are joining.
This isn’t a course. This is an experience.
If you want 2026 to feel different — and you want to arrive in January with clarity instead of searching for it — The Space is your container for fresh start energy.
This is what I dive into in episode #93 of This Expat Life.
Listen here:
If any of these notes resonated with you, and you would like to explore more of yourself, my programs are the right containers for you to accelerate your growth or your next chapter:
My online program The Co-Pilot (starting mid-October)