The Real Kick-Off Isn’t January 1, It’s November

Halloween seems to have become the unofficial kickoff of the holiday season, where many of us start a gradual decline in productive habits and drift toward autopilot through the end of the year. As the days shorten, commitments shift toward sweet treats, celebrations, and family. With good intentions, we arrive in January, resolving to “get back on track,” to start something new or double down on something we began the previous year but forgot about or lost focus on.

There’s a hidden cost to waiting until January 1. While the calendar resets, our routines, energy, and intentions don’t magically reset. Habit formation is messy; New Year’s resolutions have one of the lowest success rates of any goal-setting moment. By the first weeks of the year, many high-achievers feel the familiar sting of being behind before they’ve even started.

What if instead of waiting for January to launch something new, you started now, in November? Beginning in November rather than on January 1 is a powerful way to create lasting change. It’s one you are far more likely to stick with and carry beyond the typical new-year rush and the inevitable February slide.

Why January is Sub-Optimal

Even though January carries symbolic weight, the data show it’s a poor performer for sustained change:

• A survey found that only 9% of Americans who make New Year’s resolutions actually keep them all year.

• One review reports that 88% of people who set resolutions fail them within the first two weeks of January.

• In a large-scale study, only 55% of those who made New Year’s resolutions considered themselves successful at one year.

The problem? January is meaningful as a calendar marker, but habit change and breakthrough performance rarely follow a perfect calendar date. Behavioral science reminds us that setting a goal only on January 1 does not compensate for lack of readiness, poor planning, or the tiny “stacked wins” needed for high performance.

The “Fresh Start” & Why November Works

One of the strongest psychological frameworks here is the Fresh Start Effect (Dai, Milkman & Riis, 2014). Their research shows that temporal landmarks, such as the start of a new year, new month, birthday, or holiday, create a mental before vs. after boundary, which helps people disengage from past imperfections and pursue aspirational behaviors.

Here’s the key: while January is the most common landmark, it’s not the only one. That means you can create your own meaningful landmark by starting in November:

• November gives you runway. You treat the holiday decline not as failure, but as a pre-launch phase.

• You align with a fresh mental boundary (entering the fourth quarter of the year) but avoid the overwhelm and reset baggage of January.

• You leverage the fresh-start boost and allow time for micro-wins, habit embedding, and course-correction before the high-stakes January moment.

  
  

As one article puts it: “Temporal landmarks […] boost goal-setting because they allow us to mentally separate past mistakes from our future self.”

Also, other practical commentary suggests that starting earlier gives you more planning time, a trial period, and less pressure to nail it on day one.

Why This Matters for High-Performers and Perfectionists

High performers are used to doing things well. But perfectionism and rigid calendar thinking can create their own trap: the “I’ll wait until the perfect moment” mindset. By launching in November, you sidestep the cultural pressure of January and instead create your own initial boundary, where the stakes feel meaningful but manageable.

The science backs it. The Fresh Start Effect shows that meaningful temporal landmarks help people commit to goals by closing the chapter on past failures. So you don’t need to wait for January; you can declare November your new “Day One” and use the same effect to your advantage.

Further, habit science reminds us that changing behaviour isn’t a one-day event. Habit formation (and re-formation) takes repetition, reward, and resilience. For example, forming a habit can take 18-25 days or more.

Starting in November gives you a buffer: you begin before the end of the current year, you trial your new routine, you build micro-wins, and by January, you’re not just starting, you are already in motion.

Here’s How You Can Do It:

1. Treat November as your official launch: Set the boundary now. Mark a date, audit your existing habits, and reflect on what you want to change.

   
   

2. Apply your reimagined SMART model:

   • S – Sustainable: Choose actions that fit your real rhythm and that you are likely to continue.

   • M – Measurable: Define tangible signals of progress.

   • A – Approach-oriented: Focus on starting something rather than merely stopping something (research shows that approach goals have higher success rates than avoidance goals).

   • R – Resilient: Expect setbacks, build in recovery loops, not guilt.

   • T – Tortoise: Slow, steady, consistent wins stack up long term.

   
   

3. Plan the runway: Use November to map the process, align tools & skills, and secure small first wins (micro-win stacking) so you launch into January with momentum, not scramble.

   
   

4. Use the holiday season consciously: Rather than letting habits slip, schedule your new behaviours so they integrate with the transition. Perhaps you commit to a 10-minute practice every morning, or a quarterly review, or a check-in on your direction setting before December begins.

   
   

5. Reframe the mental story: Instead of “I’ll wait until January so I’m fresh,” tell yourself: “I’m ahead of the curve. I launch in November. I’ll use January as a continuation.” That shift in narrative removes the catch-up mindset and transforms you into the leader of your own timeline.

Why This Approach Gives You an Edge

• More time for resilience: You’re stacking micro-wins, building habit resilience before the external noise of the new year.

  
  

• Less pressure: You’re not beginning on a culturally-imposed starting line (Jan 1). You’re starting in your own context, which means less perfectionism paralysis.

  
  

• Better integration: By the time January arrives, you’re not starting, you’re moving. That changes the story for your high-performing self: you’re not behind, you’re ahead.

  
  

For high performers who tend toward rigid, all-or-nothing thinking (“I must start on January 1,” “If I fail now, I’ll just wait until next year”), this is a powerful shift. It takes the calendar out of the driver’s seat and gives you the seat.

From Thinking About Change to Creating It

If you’re always waiting for the right moment, you’ll keep waiting. The truth is, there is no perfect starting line, there is only the one you choose.

Starting in November means you’re not playing catch-up in January, you’re already in motion. You’ve already tested, adjusted, and built momentum. You enter the new year grounded, intentional, and ahead of your own expectations.

But creating that shift, breaking the cycle of all-or-nothing, clarifying what matters most, and designing habits that actually fit your life, can be hard to do alone. This is where a coach becomes invaluable. A coach helps you:

• Clarify your direction and define the version of yourself you’re stepping into

• Build habits that are sustainable, not overwhelming

• Identify and manage the internal narratives that keep you waiting for “later”

• Create accountability that supports, not pressures, you

• Shift from intention, to action, to identity

  
  

You don’t need to wait until January to begin. You can choose your fresh start now.

If you’re ready to move from thinking about change to creating it, I invite you to book a free coaching call. We’ll explore your goals, identify what’s holding you back, and outline a meaningful next step you can put into practice right away.

Book your free call here.

Let’s make November your real new beginning.