Kaylee rung in the New Year here on inanutshell with a wonderful post about the good intentions that the start of a New Year brings. I, like most of the population, am no stranger to New Year’s Resolutions. I generally take some time to reflect on the year that has passed and attempt to set goals for a bright year ahead.
Unfortunately, the problem with New Year’s Resolutions is that they place a lot of pressure on us. A year is a long time; and it’s been said that only 10% of people stick to their resolutions throughout the year. I can attest that most years, I fall into the 90% of the population who fail at their resolutions. Whether small or big plans – it’s easy to get sidelined.
This year, I was looking for concrete ideas of how I could make some positive changes, without making generalized statements like , “this year I will save more money,” or “this year, I will make more time for my friends/myself.”
It’s taken me a few days, but here are a few interesting ideas that I’ve come across that could help you keep some of the most common resolutions out there…
1. Saving Money
It’s very easy to stop making payments into a savings account if you don’t have a clear budget. And even if you do have a budget, it can be tough to stick to. Recently, this idea was floating around on Facebook and multiple friends commented how it’s such a cool idea…
*By December, the monthly savings this requires from you is approximately $200/month, which is NOT ideal around the holidays. An interesting spin on this is to alternative between the high and low numbers (Week 1: $1. Week 2: $52. Week 3: $2. Week 4: $51). The total is the same and the amount you save is always $53 bi-weekly.
2. Get in Shape
Like saving money, when making a generalized resolution to “get back to the gym” or “get in shape” it’s easy to fall off the wagon early on. Instead of focusing on a whole year, challenge yourself to an intensive goal in a shorter time frame. Catherine recently undertook a 30-day Hot Yoga Challenge where she attempted 30 classes in 30 days. While intense, it gives you a goal to strive towards. And if you can do 30/30, you can surely keep it up 3 times a week when it’s over.
3. Spend Quality Time with Family/Friends
Kaylee addressed the issue of always being plugged in to her phone and social media networks. For a lot of us, this is a common problem, especially when we’re trying to spend quality time with our friends and family. While having a cell phone out during a meal used to be considered an etiquette sin, it’s becoming more and more common that you see multiple iPhones and Blackberries cluttering up a dinner table.
The phone stack challenge was floating around the web and I think it’s a simple and effective way to focus on the people you’re with! Everyone at the table stacks their phones and the first person to touch them pays for the meal. If no one touches them, everyone pays for themselves!
4. Spend More Time on Yourself
This is always a tricky resolution to keep up with. So often, our days and nights are so jam-packed between work, social commitments and necessities like running errands, that we often lack time for ourselves. Whether your favourite thing to do is see a movie, read a book, take a bubble bath or snuggle up and watch some mindless TV, it’s important to schedule yourself into your own agenda. Instead of just saying you’ll make time for yourself, schedule one day or night a week for “ME TIME”. Don’t use that time to check things off your to-do list, instead use it to de-stress and take some alone time, away from the hussle-bussle of daily life.
Inanutshell, whatever goals you set yourself for 2013, try to look at them realistically. Thinking about a year-long challenge can be daunting, but when broken down into smaller pieces, New Year’s Resolutions can actually promote the positive change that you may have missed out on in 2012!
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