Each year’s end marks a new beginning in our lives. The celebration and global feeling of leaving the past behind help us find that right moment to start anew. Start a journal and begin with an entry listing the resolutions you have made for the following year. Something along the lines of, “This year ahead of me is the right time to start:
A healthy diet
This must be the number one on everyone’s list. The only exceptions are those who have done this in the previous years and managed to stick to it. A healthy diet is, I grant you, a very important thing but not for the reasons most decide to have one. The key part of a healthy diet is health. Eating well will help you stay healthy and feel energized. The pace of our lives does not allow us to slack, so we need to invest our best in having the energy to seize the day and do things we care about.
Exercising regularly
Physical activity is yet another important ingredient of a healthy lifestyle. They say that losing weight is 80% diet and 20% exercising. This is why people find it easier not to eat than find a physical activity they enjoy. Yet again, it is not all about extra pounds, sure it feels and looks good when they are off, but more importantly, it is about being and feeling healthy. A regular exercise routine can help us stay in shape, be energized and stress-relieved. We tend to start these resolutions overly ambitiously, but you do not have to get a gym membership and try to squeeze it into your schedule, and eventually give up because you can’t. You can go jogging, walking, dancing… it will all help you stay physically active.
Finding time for things you enjoy
This is the magical time you dedicate to yourself. You can spend it whichever way you want, alone or in the company of others, as long as you are relaxed, you enjoy, it and have some selfish personal gain from it. It can be anything from a hot bath to spending time with your children or helping the local community. Determine how often you can do this and drop everything else. Again, it does not have to be every day, but two or three times a week will help you feel a change.
Making my own decisions
As easy as it may sound to some, having the upper hand in decision-making is one of the hardest tasks for a lot of people. This process reflects your personality like none other. This is where you confront your fear of consequences, your lack of confidence or knowledge and wish to please others. Start by making personal decisions without asking for advice. I am not saying that taking someone’s advice is bad, but you need to learn to do it on your own. These first decisions should only affect you. Once you are over that and you see that nothing horrible will happen, and even if it does, it can be fixed, you are ready for making big decisions.
Being organized
Organizational skills can help you stay on top of everything in your life. They are the ones which ensure you stay in charge of everything. Once you get organized, you will find it tremendously easy to keep up with your schedule and find time for everything. Start by organizing your days with to-do lists and keep track of the time you need to complete certain tasks. Declutter your home all at once with the help of super easy storage units or other storage solution close to you to get everything out of your way.
You can make it your next task, once you start mastering the skill, to clear out the storage as well.
Learning a new skill
The fact that you have gone through school or, at least, chosen your educational path does not mean that you now only need to focus on that one thing. Constant advancement is what you truly need to focus on. Set a goal, learn a new language, or learn how to cook like your mom if she is any good. You can even make it your job to learn a new thing every day, it does not have to be an actual skill. You can become a walking, talking encyclopedia and with time it will help you understand better how things function around you.
Looking for a new job
The current economy teaches us that we need to cling to what we have and be happy with it. Not just the economy, but the natural instinct. Somehow, people, in general, tend to fight for things in life only when they struggle and when their basic instincts kick in. If you are not satisfied with your job, I am not saying you should quit straight away but start looking for something more enjoyable and one day you will come across that something. Look into current marketing demands, combine them with the new skill you are learning and make something of it.
If someone tells you that New Year’s resolutions are silly, do not believe them. We need a goal in life to help us keep going forward, just like a carrot on a stick. This is the right time of the year to set those goals.
You’ve read 7 Major New Year’s Eve Decisions for Your Best Year Yet, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’ve enjoyed this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
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