Most of us go into the New Year with a renewed spirit and a fresh start. Leave the tough and tumble times of last year behind as January brings new optimism for better things to come. That is a wonderful feeling. A time to reinvent ourselves and take on new challenges, both personally and professionally. We often have this feeling that anything is possible with old failures and baggage left behind.

So, why is feeling so strong at the turn of the New Year, but not throughout the year? The fact of the matter is, we get a fresh start each and every day.

“Each morning we are born again. What we do today is what matters most.” -Buddha

The beginning of the New Year has become the universal time for starting over, but why? Why not each new week or new day? We often hold onto mistakes and failures for days, weeks and even years instead of taking each new day for what it is, a fresh start. Each day is a gift that should not be wasted. There is no need to wait for the New Year to reinvent ourselves. Holding onto failures will only keep us from moving forward. We should not forget them but learn from them and move on. I realize that it is much easier said than done. Believe me, this is something I have to remind myself of more than I would like to admit. So, where do we start?

Perhaps we can look at our morning and evening rituals for some help. Most of us have some sort of pattern we follow when we get out of bed in the morning or just before going to sleep. What if we incorporated a few new mindset strategies into those rituals that help make this possible?

Letting go.

Before heading off to sleep, take a few minutes to appreciate the good of the day and let go of the bad. Days that go as planned will be easy, but maybe it was one of those where nothing went right. Whether it was something in our control or not, there is no reason to hang onto it. Reflect on what happened, and then let it go. Take the lesson, leave the rest behind and start fresh in the morning.

Start your day focused.

Now that you are starting each day with a clean slate, take a few minutes in the morning (or even the night before) and determine your day’s focus, what matters most? Make a list of those things that must get done today and then a secondary list of those things that you would like to get done. Don’t make this a list of 30 items you will never get through. Keep it short and sweet. Pick those top three things that must get done, then three more things that you would like to see done. That is a manageable list. If you keep it up daily, you will never get to a list of 30 items. Now your day is set up for success. It doesn’t mean you will not have a bad day from time to time, but maybe there will be fewer of them.

Decide to be happy.

Our mindset is very powerful and can significantly determine what kind of day we are going to have. If we wake up in a bad mood or upset, we are working uphill all day. However, if we wake up and decide to be happy, we start off strong. Again, I’m not saying things will not happen at times to bring us down, but if we start off right then it is harder for things to bring us down. We will feel more confident and therefore be more productive and efficient. After all, aren’t we all striving for happiness?

It’s time that we realize that each and every day we get is a fresh start and should be taken advantage of thoroughly. There is no reason to put off starting that new diet until next Monday when it’s only Wednesday, or not making that sales call to a potential client until next week. Make a decision in your life to be proactive, and you will be amazed at how things will come together. Life is not perfect, and every day is not going to be great, but pushing things off will only hold us back. I challenge you to make your New Year’s resolution this year the idea that every day is a New Day, let go of the bad, focus on the good and mostly importantly, be happy.