10 Tips for making this year your best yet!
Each year, millions of Americans make the best of intentions with a New Years’ resolution. They join a gym, they make a post about it, and even include a few friends to try and keep them accountable. Then, January 3rd hits, and everyone falls back into the same habits they had just 72 hours ago. January 3rd may be an exaggeration, but you get the picture. Best-laid plans without systems are just that, a plan without any purpose. If you truly want this year to be your best year yet, here are ten tips to get those plans into action!
10. Identify Your Concerns
Before setting your New Year’s Resolution, think about the pain points of the last year. Identify the biggest struggles that you experienced and take a moment to write them all down, or even make a note on your phone. Once you have your list, make sure to identify them all, and then take a moment to number from your smallest struggle to your biggest struggle. Keep this list handy, as we will refer back to it throughout this article.
9. Think Big
Once you have identified your concerns, flip the switch and jot down everything you want for this next year. Keep it reasonable, but make sure to leave no stone unturned. A new career or promotion, healthier habits, reading for a few minutes each day, or having more quality time with those you love are all wonderful options. Take a few minutes and write everything down that you can think of.
8. List Out Your Goals
Using your pain points and your wants for the new year, see where these two lists align. Are some of your most significant pain points also your biggest wants? For instance, if one of your biggest concerns was how often you ate out and one of your wants was to eat healthier, that would be a good goal. You acknowledge the problem and have a want to improve. Use these two lists to identify your goals over the next year.
7. Atomic Habits
Most people just stop there. They see a problem, they make their resolution, but that’s it. There isn’t a plan to actually achieve the resolution. We are taking things a step further. Implementing systems to accomplish these resolutions is almost a guaranteed success! The book Atomic Habits by James Clear is the perfect read for implementing new goals regardless of the time of year! This easy read will help you make small improvements every day. Find it on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/Atomic-Habits-Proven-Build-Break/dp/0735211299
6. Implement the Systems for Success
After reading Atomic Habits, you can now identify the systems needed for your success. Sticking with our eating healthier goal, a new system may be creating a meal plan, and meal prepping on Sunday. These small steps will result in significant results. Identify the systems and implement them throughout your day.
5. Move
Regardless of the goal you are trying to achieve, giving yourself time to move each day gives our bodies an opportunity to release stress, improves mood, boosts energy, and helps process emotions. Don’t overthink this, no gyms are required, and you don’t need to order equipment. Take a thirty-minute walk and see all the benefits that it has.
4. Rest and Relax
Do you actively notice when your body is tense? Raised shoulders, tongue stuck to the top of your mouth, and clinched wrists are just a few ways our body tells us that we are actively showing signs of stress. Whether it is on your phone or your watch, set a few timers throughout your day to remind you to take several deep breaths and untense your body. If you haven’t heard of the box breathing technique, it is simple and releases tension in your body and mind. Start by inhaling for four seconds, hold that breath for four seconds, exhale for four seconds, and hold that for four seconds. These breaths release that stress and can even lower your blood pressure. Next time you notice yourself in a tense state, try a box breath!
3. Prepare for Your Week Ahead
As part of your new systems, take some time each Sunday and prepare for your week ahead. Are everyone’s activities on the calendar, are your meals planned and prepped, and have you scheduled in time to move, rest, and relax? Taking these steps on Sundays helps you succeed when something pops up on Thursday. When you want to achieve your goals, giving yourself every advantage your can is one of the best ways to succeed. Trust me, your Thursday self will thank you for taking the time on Sunday!
2. Gratitude
Hear me out – it is a slippery slope down the complaint train. It is easy to let the excuses derail all of the progress that you’ve made. Getting caught in traffic on the way home can easily turn into “I don’t feel like cooking”. Rather than throw away the plans that you’ve made, create space for all the things that went right. I made it home safely, and as a result, I get to cook dinner for myself this evening. On those walks you’ve started taking, take the time to say all the things you are grateful for. It may take a minute to get started, but once you start, there will be no stopping you!
1. Get Out of Your Way!
You have put in all this work, now get out of the way and let your hard work pay off! It is easy to overthink every little thing. The recipe calls for olive oil, but all I have is avocado oil, or I was going to go on my walk today, but a cold front has blown in, and I don’t think I can. There will be a thousand reasons why you won’t be able to do something…if you let them. Or you can adapt and adjust, trust me when I say it will become easier with time. Use the oil that you have. It will be fine. Stay home and find a free workout on YouTube. You have done so much hard work to prepare for this year, don’t let your old habits stop you! You’ve got this!
Ready to tackle the New Year, download our FREE New Year worksheet to make this year your best year yet!
