Is It Time To Start Afresh? Here Are 8 Ways To Get Started!

I bet at some point you have uttered the words, ‘I need a fresh start’. Starting afresh means having the opportunity to start over again. It is regarded as something positive whereby we invite change and new beginnings into our lives for the better.

A fresh start may be essential for our health and well-being as we may reach a point in time where we are tired of our current life.

Most people feel they need a fresh start when things have not been going well, they might outgrow their current circumstances or want to forward to move from trauma and pain.

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In my experience, the desire for a fresh start got stronger and stronger over time.  

I was in my 20s and incredibly lonely; I had no friends, was going through a break-up with my partner of 3 years, and my family all lived in different cities. 

Most people my age lived for Fridays so they could go out, have fun or relax and put their work stresses aside for a while. I, on the other hand, dreaded them.

I dreaded them because I knew my weekend would consist of being in the house and sitting in front of the TV chain-smoking because I was bored. I would have nowhere to go and no one to see.

They lived for Fridays. I lived for Mondays.

Mondays were the start of a new working week, and that meant I had structure, routine and, more importantly, social interactions with my work colleagues. When I was working, I didn’t feel lonely.

Aside from my sad social life, I had become trapped and suffocated with my current life. Nothing satisfied me anymore, I hated my job, nothing excited me, I was angry and hurt about my recent failed relationship and I had simply had enough.

I could feel in my soul that I was ready for change. I wanted something to look forward to and bring excitement to life. I wanted to feel good again and put all crap that had recently happened behind  me for good!

How can we tell when we need a fresh start?

Your mind, body and soul will always tell you when you need a fresh start; you just need to ensure you listen. When you need a clean slate, you may experience the following:

• You get bored of things that you used to enjoy
• You are unhappy with your current circumstances
• You are currently experiencing trauma/hurt/pain
• Your mental health and well-being is impacted by your current circumstances
• You find yourself wishing you could get back to ‘your old self’
• You feel like you have no purpose
• You feel like you have outgrown your current circumstances
• You feel lost and do not know which path to take yet

Staring afresh

As appealing as starting new pastures sounds, the journey may not be easy, but it is undoubtedly doable with the desire for change and the motivation to take action.

Initially, changing everything you know and are used to may feel scary. The fear of the unknown can also be enough to put us off entirely!

1. Work on your state of mind:

We can change our friends, our careers, the place we live, the way we look and aspects of our personality, but what will REALLY change if we don’t change our mindset?

Starting afresh should mean looking within because our outer world cannot change if our inner world doesn’t too; they go hand in hand.

I knew that moving to a new city wouldn’t stop me from feeling the emotional turmoil I was feeling, and I knew that getting a new job wouldn’t automatically cure my loneliness.

I decided that my fresh start would start now, at that moment, and I wouldn’t have to change anything externally to begin it; so long I was committed to working on my mindset, there would be a shift in my current reality, and things would begin to improve for me.

I started to accept my circumstances for what they were, and I began being grateful for all the good things that I had in my life, despite how shit my circumstances were, and I changed my perspective.

Changing your state of mind can be so powerful that nothing in our external world needs to change, and you can still feel like you are living a completely different life!  

2. Make a commitment:

We have all been guilty of wanting our circumstances to change but doing absolutely nothing about it! We moan and moan some more as if the moaning is going to somehow change our lives for the better.

At some point, you may need to ask yourself, how badly do you want to start afresh? If you wanted it badly enough, you would do everything possible to make it happen.

I get that it isn’t always easy to get started, however, you must make a commitment to yourself that you will take the steps necessary to move forward with your life and leave the negative in the past!

When you commit to yourself, you hold yourself accountable for your actions and are more likely to stay disciplined and focused on the goals you wish to achieve.

3. Make a plan:

In order to start over in life, you will need to have somewhat of a plan. It is true what they say: fail to plan, plan to fail.

Think about what it is that you want to change. Would you benefit from moving to a new city? Do you want more friends and have more positive experiences around you? Do you want a new career?

Reflect on it, and then think about how you can actively begin to make those changes!

You may want to start off by setting some goals, but setting small goals that will help you achieve the big ones. For example, if you want to move to a new place, you may want to make a goal to apply for X amount of jobs in the new place per week.

You may not follow this plan to the T, as some things could change due to circumstances or being out of your control, but you can adapt it as needed.

4. Take action:

Nothing will fall in our lap, so when we want something, we have to go out and get it, and there is no exception for starting afresh!

Taking action goes hand in hand with goal setting and making your plan; you set your goal and do what you need to do to achieve your goal.

5.Meet new people:

Starting afresh and meeting new people go hand in hand; there is no better time to invite new people into your life than when you are wiping the slate clean.

It can lead you to new opportunities and experiences and lead you down different avenues you would never have thought you would go. They say great things happen when you leave your comfort zone!

Aside from that, mixing with new people can help you grow and develop as an individual, so join groups, network and start hobbies; with good people around you, your whole world can change for the better!

6. Know you won’t always get it right:

On your journey for starting afresh, it is essential to remember that you will not always get it right!

It may be that you wind up down a path you feel is not quite right for you, or a choice you made may not live up to your expectations.

You don’t have to get everything right; in fact, making mistakes will help guide you towards the path that is right for you!

Remember, nothing worth having comes easy!

7. Be willing to change:

When ready for new beginnings, we may need to look closer to home and look within ourselves. Are there aspects of ourselves that we need to change?

Perhaps you need to change habits and behaviours to enable you to start afresh. Or maybe you need to hold yourself accountable for your actions in order to move forward.

Whatever the reason, this will require you to be honest with yourself.

8. Try new things:

They say variety is the spice of life, so no better excuse to try new things for starting afresh, great things can happen when you leave you comfort zone, not to mention it’s also an opportunity to gain new skills and meet new people!

You never know what will happen when you leave your comfort zone!

Let us know in the comments how you made a fresh start!!