A Fresh Start for 2025: Building Habits That Matter

The New Year acts as a nice cosmic reset. I love it for creating habits, serialization of creative efforts and a fresh way of thinking about things. 

Creating habits is a about choosing behaviors and principles  you can live by, day in and day out, until they’re woven into your existence. One tenant I always embrace but maybe its best to institutionalize it as a habit for 2025:

Strengthen Your Networks

We need each other. Don’t mistake individualism for solitude.  Your personal network is your safety net. It’s not city services or government agencies that will come through for you when life gets hard. It’s the people you’ve built relationships with—your friends, neighbors, and community.

This isn’t just about having people to call in a crisis; it’s about creating an implicit social contract. A strong network means mutual trust and support. It’s about being there for each other, sharing resources, and building resilience together. 

Whether it’s a natural disaster, an economic downturn, a unknown, unknown, or simply needing someone to help with your kid’s carpool, your community will be there for you in ways institutions can’t.

How you strengthen networks.

Invest in friendships: Check in with people regularly. Be the first to reach out. ←–

Engage your neighbors: Host a block party, join a local group, or simply say hi more often.

Be generous: Offer help before you’re asked. Reciprocity will follow naturally.

When your network is strong, you’re not just more secure; you’re more connected, more fulfilled, and better equipped to thrive in whatever comes your way.

Moving Forward

The new year is also a good time for strengthening your digital network as well. 

A perfect time to conduct a digital security check and lock down your online presence. Some  basic OPSEC (operational security) procedures to this end.  

Audit your accounts: Review all online accounts and deactivate ones you no longer use.

Update passwords: Use strong, unique passwords for each account and consider a password manager.

Enable two-factor authentication (2FA): Add an extra layer of security wherever possible.

Review privacy settings: Check and adjust privacy settings on social media and other platforms.

Be mindful of sharing: Limit the PII (Personal Identifable Information ) you share online to reduce vulnerability.

Secure  network  protect you and ensures your connections remain strong, not an attack vector.