A commissioned piece exploring the psychological weight of January. While most content around the New Year focuses on achievement and transformation, this essay argues that January’s true power lies in forgiveness. By leveraging the "Fresh Start Effect," we use temporal landmarks to distance ourselves from past failures.

The objective was to deconstruct "Goblin Mode"—Oxford’s 2022 Word of the Year—moving beyond its surface-level definition of laziness. I wanted to explore it as a legitimate psychological rebellion against the "perpetual performance" of modern life, specifically within the high-pressure context of the Singapore expat community.