This Is Why January 9th Matters More Than January 1st.

January 9th: National Quitter’s Day.

The second Friday of the new year—when the champagne-fuelled excitement of fresh starts collides with the cold reality of your actual life.

By this point, most New Year’s resolutions have already been quietly abandoned. Not because you’re lazy. Not because you lack discipline. But because something far more important was never addressed.

Here’s what most people miss: quitting isn’t personal. It’s data.

It’s your system telling you that intention alone was never going to be enough.

The goals that survive beyond January 9th aren’t the ones backed by the most motivation or willpower. They’re the ones that come with an identity upgrade.

This is your blueprint—inspired by Coach Keith Leonard—to ensure your goals don’t just survive this year; they become inevitable.

Design Goals That Can Survive Reality.

Take a moment to reflect on your goals for the year ahead.

If you’re honest, are these goals you genuinely want—or are they the goals you think you should have?

Goals that come from obligation rather than desire require constant motivation. And motivation is not a sustainable strategy.

This doesn’t mean your goals should be easy. Meaningful goals should stretch you. They should challenge your habits, your comfort zones, and your assumptions about what’s possible.

But you must want the outcome enough to persist on the difficult days—because those days will come.

Why Resistance Always Shows Up.

Instead of fearing resistance, ask a better question: What is this resistance trying to protect me from?

Resistance isn’t sabotage. It’s protection.

It’s trying to shield you from loss, discomfort, uncertainty, and the unknown.

When you dig deeper, the fear is rarely about the goal itself. It’s about what success would cost you.

Ask yourself honestly: If I succeeded at this goal, what would I have to give up?

At first, the answers might sound practical—comfort, control, time, predictability. But beneath those is a more unsettling question:

Who would I need to let go of?

The Identity That’s Holding You Hostage.

We all carry an image of ourselves—one that once kept us safe and successful.

Perhaps you see yourself as the person who handles everything. The one who works late. The one who stays busy to feel valuable.

That identity may have served you before—but now it’s quietly resisting the very changes you want to make.

The fear whispers: Who will I be without this? How will people see me?

This is where most goals stall—not because the goal is wrong, but because the underlying identity hasn’t been updated.

Identity Is Everything.

James Clear says it simply: behaviour change is identity change.

If you keep relying on the same habits, patterns, and coping strategies, you’ll keep creating the same results.

So once you’re clear on the outcome you want, ask a more powerful question: Who do I need to become to make this goal inevitable?

Then go one step further: What version of me would no longer fit if this worked?

Every meaningful goal involves loss. You can’t grow without letting something go.

Want a relationship? You may lose a level of independence. Want to get fitter? You’ll lose some free time. Want more calm? You may need to let go of urgency as your default state or the addiction to adrenaline.

The problem isn’t the loss—it’s resisting the conversation.

When losses remain unacknowledged, your system pushes back. When they’re named, resistance softens.

Replace What You’re Losing.

Letting go becomes easier when you consciously design what replaces it.

If planning your days feels restrictive, what if the payoff is clarity, focus, and time for yourself?

If stillness scares you because you equate movement with success, what if stillness gives you better thinking, calmer responses, and stronger decisions?

This is where identity shifts.

Ask yourself: Who am I becoming?

Someone who can say no without guilt? Someone who speaks up without the fear of judgment? Someone who values rest without needing to earn it?

Beware Perfection-Based Goals.

When goals are tied to perfection, one missed step becomes proof that “this isn’t who I am.”

Instead of “I go to the gym three times a week,” try: “I am someone who moves my body, or movement is medicine.”

Instead of one hour of exercise, start with ten minutes. Instead of silence for twenty minutes, try three.

Identity grows through consistency, not intensity.

Every small action is evidence.

The Status Quo Is the Real Barrier.

Ask yourself: What has to stay the same in my life for this goal to fail?

Change only feels threatening when success feels unsafe.

When you respect your resistance instead of fighting it, it no longer needs to sabotage you from the shadows.

Identity Is What You Return To Under Pressure.

January 9th isn’t about losing motivation. It’s about snapping back to who you’ve always been.

When stress hits, we default to what feels familiar—overworking, overeating, staying busy, staying in control.

So the real question becomes: Who am I under pressure? And… who do I want to become under pressure?

Because identity is what you return to when things get uncomfortable.

Stop Waiting to Feel Ready.

Your goal isn’t asking you to do more. It’s asking you to stop being someone you’ve been for a long time.

Those old versions were survival strategies. They earned approval. They created safety. They helped you cope.

But they are no longer sufficient for where you’re going next.

So don’t wait to feel confident. Confidence is built after action, not before it.

Ask instead: What would this version of me do on an ordinary Tuesday? What would they no longer tolerate?

Identity is installed through action—especially on low-motivation days.

Make the Shift Inevitable.

On the days you want to quit, ask: What would someone like me do next?

Not forever. Not perfectly. Just next.

Drink water. Take a breath. Make the decision that aligns with who you’re becoming.

You didn’t fail past goals—you reverted to an older identity that felt safer.

When you understand that, everything changes.

The Truth About Achieving Goals.

Achieving goals isn’t about pushing harder. It’s about becoming someone who doesn’t need to push.

Quitter’s Day loses its power when you outgrow the version of yourself that’s threatened by change.

Before January 9th, Ask Yourself This:

Who do I need to become for this goal to feel normal—not forced? What small action can I take in the next 24 hours to prove it?

Then ask again: What can I do in the next hour? The next ten minutes?

This is how you stack evidence. This is how identity shifts.

Your goals aren’t asking for more willpower. They’re asking you to let go of who you’ve been and give yourself permission to become who you’re ready to be.

The question isn’t whether you can achieve this goal. It’s this:

Are you willing to trust the version of yourself who’s ready for this now?

Are you willing to live from the identity that already knows this is possible?

That person is already within you. Now it’s time to let them lead.

Here's to you,

Warm wishes,

Lori