The First Week’s Effect
(4 minute read time)
Why January 19th matters more than January 1st
It's January 19th. The ball dropped, the holidays are over, and most resolutions are already cracking. The two weeks after New Years tells you exactly how your year will look. And right now we are in the third week, this is when the hard part starts for the people who are sticking to their goals.
before we get into that, let's discuss the Myth of January 1st
Most of us treat January as a magic reset button. We write down goals, spend an hour mapping out the year, and convince ourselves this year will be different.
It feels good, the energy is there, motivation feels easy… everyone is doing it.
Look – setting goals is good and it matters. But real change? It doesn't happen overnight or when it feels easy.
Change is the product of time and pressure. It’s what happens when you're showing up on day seven when the hype is gone. On day 30, when everyone else stopped. On a random Tuesday in March, when you don't feel like it but you do it anyway.
January 1st is a useful reset, just don't forget about it by January 8th.
the first week(s) effect
The first two weeks are always the truth-tellers. The collective New Year's hype wore off, routines feel boring, and nobody is cheering you on. For most, this is the breaking point. For the few sticking to it, this is where you separate from the crowd.
The funny thing is – if you make it through, it gets easier. By day 19, the thing that felt impossible on day 1 starts to feel normal. Your first run will always be harder than any other runs in the future. The same goes for everything: waking up earlier, eating better, building anything new. The initial resistance fades… only if you push through.
That's the point. Change needs time and pressure. The discomfort of something new plus the reps to make it stick.
So if you’re part of the few, you’re already doing the work that matters. And if you’ve fallen off? That's alright, the trail is still here.
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what to do right now
You’ve built the momentum, now you need to keep it. There are two things here I recommend:
Check-ins and Schedules.
Check in to keep you accountable and on track.
Weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly – whatever works. But find a moment to pause and ask yourself a few questions. Track the progress.
It does two things: Keeps your goals visible so they don't fade into the background, and gives you proof you’re actually moving. And when you look back in a month and see what you’ve done? You’ll feel very accomplished because you’re not just hoping you’ll make progress. You’re seeing it.
The questions don't need to be complicated:
What did I do this week to reach my goals?
What felt hard? What felt easy?
Am I on track?
What's one thing to do better next week?
Build a Schedule.
Stick to a Schedule.
It sounds simple because it is. But most skip it, then wonder why the week feels chaotic.
When you schedule your week, everything flows. The work gets done, you don't miss workouts, you’re not scrambling to find time – you already made it. When you don’t? You’re constantly playing catch-up, squeezing things in wherever they’ll go, and hoping it all works out.
Here's how it works: Sit down once a week for 20 minutes, whenever that is, and map out the week. Block in the non-negotiables first: work, obligations, errands. Then fill the gaps with what moves you forward: workouts, personal projects. The things that actually matter but are easy to skip when life gets loud.
It's not rigidity, it's intention. You’re deciding in advance what your time is spent on instead of letting the day decide for you. And I know the week still shifts. Things come up, but when you have a plan, you adjust the route–instead of wandering without one.
The year isn't decided on January 1st.
It's won on the days when nobody's watching. When the motivation’s gone, and all you’ve got left is the choice to keep moving or stop. Don’t stop. Check in with yourself. Build your schedule. Show up when it’s boring, that's the work. It's mundane, but it separates the people who talk about change from the people who live it.
Peak Life embraces the steady climb over the explosive start. The kind that happens over weeks, months, seasons, years. The kind that compounds into something real. So if you’re still here on day seven, day fourteen, day nineteen– you’re already ahead. Keep going. The trail is long, but every step counts.
And if you’ve already stopped? Start again today.
Stay in constant motion – ZP
