The Holiday Reset That Might Change Your Year

Before you close this page in protest at the word “homework,” hear me out.

This is the cozy kind.

The kind you do in fuzzy socks with something warm to drink. The kind that feels less like productivity and more like finally giving yourself room to breathe.

Here’s your holiday assignment:

Spend 30 minutes before the new year asking yourself one honest question:

What do you actually want?

Not what sounds impressive.
Not what you think you should want.
Not what someone else expects from you.

What do you want?

Here’s how I like to set the mood for this kind of reflection:

1. Light a candle. My current favorite is Big Dipper Wax Works. The unscented candles have a subtle honey-like scent, and the company supports sustainable beekeeping farms.
2. Make tea. Lately I’ve been loving Trader Joe’s Harvest Tea — cozy, warm, and perfect for slowing down during the holidays.
3. Get comfortable. My go-to house slippers are the Bombas Gripper Slippers. Truly one of my favorite gifts from last year.
4. Grab a pen and paper. I’m obsessed with the Pilot Juice Up 04 pens because they make even messy brainstorming feel intentional.
5. Start writing. Stream of consciousness. No editing. No pressure.

And if you need help organizing your thoughts, Download this mind map to help.

Maybe what you want is to:

• perform more
• teach less
• finally record the album living in your head
• start the creative project you keep postponing
• spend more time with family
• travel more
• build a life that actually feels aligned

Or maybe you want all of those things and have no idea how they fit together yet.

That’s okay.

After more than 20 years of coaching musicians and navigating my own creative path, I’ve learned something important:

People who build meaningful, sustainable careers rarely have everything figured out from the beginning.

What they do have is the willingness to dream imperfectly, adjust as they grow, and create space for their ideas to breathe.

This kind of reflection work can feel vulnerable. It can bring up uncertainty, self-doubt, or that familiar “not good enough yet” feeling.

But this isn’t about creating another resolution you’ll abandon in February.

It’s about getting honest about the life you genuinely want to build.

That’s why I created the Practice with Purpose Planner — a place where those messy holiday reflections become something tangible.

A space to clarify your goals, map your purpose, build intentional routines, and create a life that feels aligned both on and off stage.

Not a rigid perfection system.

A living, breathing space for your dreams.

Because dreaming isn’t separate from planning.

Sometimes dreaming is the beginning of the plan.

-Ixi

The Practice with Purpose framework is $99 for 2 6-month planners! It includes:

• the complete framework ($37 system)
• your 2 physical planners included (a $80 value, shipped to your door)
• training modules and ongoing resources

A system built on alignment, connection and flow.