Is October Actually a Second New 12 months? October Concept, Defined

Someplace between the first pumpkin candle and the sudden, uncontrollable urge to reorganize your complete pantry, you may discover it: a really particular, mildly frenzied vitality that has nothing to do with the bucket of Halloween sweet sitting idly in your entryway—and every part to do with desirous to reinvent your complete life by 11:59 p.m. on December 31.

When you’ve felt it, you’re not imagining issues, and also you’re undoubtedly not alone. Naturally, the web has a reputation for it: “October idea”—the concept that October features as a type of second New 12 months. The idea first gained traction on TikTok in 2023, with creators describing October as an opportunity to reframe the remainder of the yr reasonably than ready for January 1. It resurfaces each fall, proper on schedule, and this yr isn’t any exception.

So is there something actual behind it, or is that this simply seasonal main-character vitality? Right here’s a better take a look at the place the concept truly comes from, the psychology that makes it stick, and—extra usefully—what to truly do with that vitality when you’ve felt it.

What Is October Concept, Precisely?

London-based content material creator Izzy Utterson was among the many first to call the pattern, explaining that the arrival of spooky season marks a 90-day lead-up to the New 12 months—a pure catalyst for self-reflection and private development. In a video that’s since racked up practically 42,000 views, she urged followers to deal with the transitional interval as a chance and set themselves a 90-day problem. “The October Concept to me is this concept that October is a transformative interval in our life,” she instructed Newsweek. “It’s three months till the New 12 months, so we begin to actually replicate on what’s behind us and look to the yr forward.”

The pattern didn’t totally take off till late September and early October of 2024, when creators throughout TikTok started describing the identical feeling: a sudden urge to take inventory of the yr and make adjustments earlier than it ends. The framing positions October 1 as a substitute January 1. Quite than saving resolutions for the New 12 months, the concept is that October is a greater, extra pure time, truly, to give attention to self-growth and new beginnings.

A big a part of the attraction is solely arithmetic. The arrival of fall marks roughly a 90-day lead-up to the New 12 months, which Utterson, amongst different creators, have described as a pure catalyst for self-reflection and a sort of built-in problem window. As Macy Landsman, a TikTok creator primarily based in Miami, stated, October tends to fire up the identical anxious, motivated feeling folks often affiliate with the arrival of a brand new yr—a second to replicate on what’s been achieved and what nonetheless wants work.

There’s a sensible logic beneath the pattern, too. In line with Brianna Paruolo, LCMHC, a psychotherapist and founding father of On Par Remedy, it is smart why this time of yr feels so inspiring. “Analysis means that it takes a median of 66 days for a brand new conduct to change into computerized, although this will fluctuate relying on the complexity of the behavior and particular person variations,” Paruolo defined. “By starting in October, you’re giving your self roughly 90 days till the New 12 months—ample time to not solely type a behavior, however to start out seeing significant progress.”

Why This Feeling Is So Particular to Fall

A part of what makes October idea land, even for individuals who in any other case typically roll their eyes at TikTok tendencies, is that it’s tapping into one thing psychologists even have a reputation for: the “recent begin impact”—the well-documented tendency to really feel extra motivated to pursue targets proper after a symbolic turning level, or “temporal landmark.” New 12 months’s Day is the obvious one, however the first of a brand new month, a birthday, or the shift into fall can set off the identical psychological reset button.

A part of the pattern’s attraction additionally comes right down to timing itself. In line with the consultants at Calm, after the unstructured swirl of summer season and the primary chaotic weeks of fall, October tends to really feel steadier, as routines, work, and college schedules settle again into place. It is smart {that a} return to construction would additionally include a return to wanting construction elsewhere in life.

The A part of October Concept Price Being Skeptical Of

Right here’s the catch: The identical 90-day urgency that makes October idea motivating may also tip into stress quick. Loads of the pattern’s messaging leans into massive swings—switching jobs, ending a situationship, or taking a leap of religion on a brand new undertaking, treating October because the month for large adjustments and main life selections earlier than the yr runs out. That’s lots to ask of any 90-day window, and it’s this precise all-or-nothing pondering that tends to provide a burst of motivation in week one and complete burnout by week three.

If October idea is de facto only a rebranded model of the New 12 months’s decision cycle—massive targets, excessive stakes, passive abandonment by February—it’s not truly providing something new. In different phrases, the helpful model of this pattern isn’t “change into another person earlier than December.” It’s noticing that you’ve got a pocket of actual motivation accessible proper now, and utilizing it on one thing realistically sized.

So What Ought to You Really Do With This Power?

Quite than making an attempt an entire overhaul, the extra sustainable model of this pattern focuses on small, significant additions as a substitute of dramatically chopping issues out . A number of methods to place that into apply:

1. Add one small behavior as a substitute of overhauling your routine. An additional serving of greens, a each day journaling behavior, or a brief each day stroll does greater than a five-part life plan you’ll abandon by week two.
2. Decide one thing you may maintain by way of the vacations. Your schedule is about to get significantly much less predictable, so select a behavior sufficiently small to outlive contact with an precise, busy life.
3. Anchor it to one thing you already do. A constant wake-up time, 10 minutes of motion most days, or cooking at house three nights every week as a substitute of 1—habits that slot into an current routine have a tendency to stay higher than ones that require constructing a brand new one from scratch.
4. Give it 90 days, not a deadline. Deal with October idea’s countdown as a runway for one sustainable change, not a tough deadline for complete reinvention.

That’s actually the entire trick to utilizing October idea with out burning out on it—as a result of the model of your life you’re picturing whereas scrolling TikTok at 11 p.m. isn’t the one you truly must dwell with tomorrow morning.

If you’d like a fuller framework for this reasonably than choosing one thing in isolation, we’ve written an entire information to constructing a fall routine that truly sticks. It’s value a learn if October idea has you feeling motivated however unsure the place to truly begin.