It’s time to make some powerful New Year’s resolutions
The beginning of the new year is an opportunity for everyone to embrace acts of self-improvement. However, when we focus on resolutions that lack intrinsic value, we tend to give up on these goals within a few short months. In order to choose a meaningful resolution that will guarantee self-growth, an individual should follow these six steps.
Openly reflect on the Past Year
To help determine effective resolutions, reflect on the positive and negative moments you have experienced within the past year. Try to determine some of your favorite memories and accomplishments, as well as instances that did not bring you happiness.
Below are some key areas to focus on:
–Your relationships with friends and family: have you maintained meaningful bonds, or did you drift away from certain people?
–Your physical health: have you been practicing healthy habits?
–Your mental health: has anything in the past year triggered lasting negative emotions?
–Your occupation: Are you satisfied with your job? Are you able to maintain a work-life balance?
–Your academics: Have you been performing well in school? Are you interested in the class content?
–Your hobbies: Do you balance your time with hobbies that make you happy? Is there an activity you wanted to try but never did?
Brainstorm a list of goals
Sit down and brainstorm an extensive list of goals that you could accomplish in the foreseeable future, as well as at later points in your life. Combine these ambitions with the realizations you made after reflecting on the previous year. Focus on moments that created lasting happiness, and determine the best resolutions that would allow you to extend this satisfaction. If certain habits caused you extreme dissatisfaction in the past, brainstorm a list of goals that would help diminish the negative emotions.
Learn to prioritize resolutions
It’s great to have a long list of goals, but it is also important to realize that you cannot accomplish every resolution at once. Keep your list of ambitions in the back of your mind, but start by focusing on one or two immediate acts of self-improvement. Prioritize the resolution that you think would improve the quality of your life the most. Keep in mind whether this is a realistic ambition: will you actually be able to reach this goal based on your current circumstances? If this seems unlikely, start with a different resolution that will allow for progress in the foreseeable future.
Create a plan of action
Imagine where you would like to be a month from January, as well as six months from now. Try to create a timeline that incorporates intermediate goals along the way, instead of exclusively striving for the end result. For instance, if your goal is to improve your physical health, start to search for a fitness center before the new year begins, and plan a weekly workout routine. Put together a book of healthy recipes to try out over the course of a few months. Strive for smaller steps that will permit you to build up to the larger goal.
Allow for flexibility
You may find that even when you plan out the exact steps to accomplish your resolution, life throws you a curveball, causing your previous effort to diminish. If your goal falls off track, don’t panic and immediately give up. Instead, readjust your plan to accommodate the new limitations prohibiting your progress. Additionally, you should never be upset at yourself for altering a goal because of an unexpected change of heart. This is merely part of life; as people change the elements that bring you happiness will change as well.
Realize that resolutions can happen at any time
You don’t have to limit resolutions to the beginning of the year. Personal growth should be a continuous process. If you discover a new ambition in the middle of the spring, you should absolutely incorporate this ambition, concluding the necessary steps to reach your ambition. The new year is a great time for a fresh start, but with determination and positivity, you can create an impactful change during any point in your life.