"Sometimes, you have to just do the thing"
On procrastination and getting in the way of our own to-do lists
Happy New Year!
The headline of my first newsletter of 2026 is in quote marks because it’s a paraphrase of something Mr H said to me recently.
Now, I'm the woo woo one in our house. I make the moodboards, I do the manifesting. Sometimes I pull an angel card to see what it might predict for my day, or my project, or whatever I'm working on. Mr H is not woo woo, which is absolutely fine. We are a yin and a yang in many ways.
But, we often talk about work stuff, and I really find his take on things fascinating as the less woo-woo approach can often blend with my faffing around taking action and give the clarity I need - often I really do need that injection of reality!
And, with his permission, I’ve shared this recent interaction because I hope it might give you the oomph you need to get going this January, too.
We all have a to-do list. We don’t always want to do the things that are on it. I know I don’t! And there are some things on my list that I DO want to do but, well, I’m a bit nervous to do.
And as this New Year starts, I know we will all have things that we don't want to do, that we might have been putting off. But equally, things that we do want to do, that we are nervous or frightened of starting, because of the ‘what if’.
Either way, you’re not getting on with ‘doing the things’. You are procrastinating- either out of the fear that it won't work, or sometimes actually, the feeling that it will work. After all, if you take action and things do begin to happen, then you have to take more action and deal with the success, which can be super scary.
And so I sat with his words of wisdom, slept on them, and then, on Sunday, I woke up feeling grotty. A mix of headache, sore throat and some down-in-the-dumps feelings. I decided, after seeing a Facebook post, to sign up for a workshop by my lovely friend Marianne Power. It was called Hello 2026, and it was three hours of guided journaling, on themes from a book called Project You Journals.
So, I decided to join the workshop and journal all the feelings out, to try and find some clarity on ‘just doing the thing’. We did lots of writing (I even lit a candle, for the vibes), and I leaned into the woo woo in the hope of action.
I wrote, and I wrote… my arm ached! Out it came, feelings, actions, plans, goals, hopes, dreams…. talk of a Shepherd’s Hut in my five year plan and a message from our ‘inner, wise cheerleader’. The woo woo was strong, and one of the magical things that happened was that I wrote down some things that I wasn't expecting. We had to think about how we imagined our life in five years' time as well as how we imagine our life in 2026. We planned out our goals with a calendar, benchmarking the times we’d like to have achieved the ‘things’ and what else we were doing in the year.
It was so enlightening - and two things in particular I wrote down that I wasn’t expecting are now challenging me from my long term ‘to do’ list.
But now in the light of Monday morning, the journalling is done and I know it’s time to ‘do the thing’. Or ‘Do the things’. There is some stuff I need to just get on with this week - whether I like it or not. Whether it scares me or not. We’re back to the Mr H action taking rather than the Jenny H pondering and considering.
The good news is, as Mr H went on to tell me, that sometimes, actually, the things don’t take as long as you expect. And they can be more enjoyable. And once you've done the thing(s), obviously you feel loads better! It’s off your to-do list.
There seem to be two schools of thought this time of year. There are the resolution people, the fresh start people. Those who mood board and goal set. And then there were also ones who are very much about the idea that January the first doesn't have to be a reset button - indeed, January doesn’t have to be a restart month.
There are the ponderers and the doers. The action takers and the journalers. I find myself in the middle - taking some action (getting back into my Substack was one particular thing for today) but also finding a moment for the moodboard updates.
When you think about your to-do list and your goals, there will be some you can tick off today, and others that require a bit more planning. It might be that you’ve been sitting on an idea, or wanting to make a change, but this just happens to be the time you’re going to take action. It might be that January is the moment you go for it, but it’s been a plan in the making for years.
I often use the analogy of running a marathon when talking about goals and actions. If you decided that 2026 was going to be the year that you ran a marathon, you wouldn't go out today and run a marathon (well, I hope not!). You might look up what you need to do, a training plan, nutrition and equipment. You might try Park Run. You might do a 10k first. You might talk to some people who have run a marathon.
You wouldn't (I hope!) just go out and do it. And it’s the same with goals. Yes, there are some which are ‘just do them’ but there are others which are about the small steps, the micro goals and actions along the way to the big goal. (Yes, those small things are still ‘things to just do’!)
I know for a lot of people this month, it's your tax return. I used to be a January tax return person. And again, under the influence of my guru, Mr. H, I am now a middle of the year tax person. And can I tell you how smug I feel now in January, that I did my tax return last year!
So, if your tax return is your ‘just do the thing’ I urge you to get going with it! Perhaps it’s job hunting, or finally resigning. Maybe it’s having a chat with your manager about this year being THE year you get a promotion. Maybe the ‘thing’ for you is starting a Substack, a podcast, or posting on LinkedIn. It might be that it’s applying for jobs, or sorting out your CV. You know, deep down, I’m sure, what your thing is you just need to do.
I hope this inspires you to begin!
Finally, if you are going to ‘just do the things’ today or this week, remember to reward yourself. It can be easy to take actions and then move on to the next thing, but if it’s a big deal action, take time to reward yourself and pat yourself on the back.
‘Decide on your prize’ is part of a post from Millie Gooch, who is founder of the Sober Girl Society. She came on my Freelance Feels podcast a few years ago and, as I'm also trying to embrace Dry January, I've been looking at her posts, and this one's really lovely, because it talks about rewarding yourself or giving yourself a prize.
Thanks for reading - please do let me know how your goals and ‘getting on with the things’ go in January! I’d love to hear how things are going for you.
And if you want help with any of it, get in touch to chat about how coaching can help. You can read more about my coaching and testimonials on my website.
xJenny
WHAT ELSE I’VE BEEN WRITING…
I have had two pieces published since I last wrote a Substack - one for Grazia, and one for Cotswold Life. Quite the mix!
Grazia was a spin on my Substack about being a non-mum in the workplace - you can read the Grazia piece here.
The Cotswold Life piece isn’t currently online but you can get the mag in shops - the piece is all about the fabulous Bronwyn Heywood, who is a female bag piper.
WORKSHOPS IN JANUARY 2026
There are three workshops coming up this month:
LinkedIn for freelance journalists: Lunchtime and Evening workshops. For all freelance journos who are lurking on LinkedIn but know it’s time to up your game!
Job hunting and CV confidence: A weekend workshop where we’ll delve into your reasons for job hunting. This workshop will cover everything from your job hunting dealbreakers to LinkedIn (of course!), cover letters and CV tips. There’ll be time to write, to share and to ask questions.
AND FINALLY…. What’s your word of the year?
