Written by Charlotte Lyons
Yep, it’s about to be that time of year again.
That awkward seven days between Christmas and New Year’s where you aren’t really sure what to do with yourself.
You’ve attended all your Christmas festivities for the year, you’ve finished up your university exams, maybe you have some time off work, and so you finally have some down time to…well… do nothing.
It’s usually in this time that many of us start to think about the year ahead and make our New Year’s resolutions.
“Exercise more” …
“Use social media less” …
“Wake up earlier” …
“Eat healthier” …
Sound familiar?
We’ve heard all of these types of resolutions before.
I’m guilty of these myself!
And, if I am completely honest, almost every year, my broad resolutions are scarily similar to those from the year before as they remain incomplete.
However, this year was the first time I decided to change the way I approached these resolutions altogether.
And boy, did it help me achieve some of the biggest hopes and aspirations I have had in my 20 years of living!
I secured a dream internship while at university, took a leap of faith and started studying a screen acting course at Screenwise College, and I climbed the world’s tallest free-standing mountain- Mount Kilimanjaro.
So, here are my little golden nuggets of advice to setting New Year’s resolutions that you can actually achieve!
- BE SPECIFIC:
We’re all guilty of setting out lofty ambitions that lack any sort of specificity.
When you ask someone their New Year’s resolution, you are way more likely to hear “I want to save more money” rather than “I want to cut down how much money I spend on takeout meals by cooking four nights at home each week.”
No, I’m not telling you to bring up your detailed meal plan to anyone who asks!
My point is that the latter answer is a New Year’s resolution that is actionable and attainable.
Creating broad goals makes it difficult to know exactly what you need to do to achieve that goal.
Having general goals hovering over your head without a clear path forward is stressful too!
So, if your resolution is only a few words long, you may need to rethink it and map out the specific steps to get there.
2. BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE:
My second piece of advice is that you do NOT have to do it alone.
Family, friends, teachers and mentors are all fabulous sources of support and inspiration.
Most resolutions people set tend to fall into one of these three categories: lifestyle changes, physical health or finances.
So, odds are, you probably know someone who is looking to make similar changes to you!
When I decided I wanted to climb Mount Kilimanjaro, my Dad and I began going on hikes and runs together.
Having a partner with me kept me motivated and accountable.
If you prefer to do things alone, there are other ways to track progress. For example, if your goal is to do more mindfulness and meditation, you can track your growth through mindfulness apps or a dairy.
3. REMEMBER: THERE IS NOTHING MAGICAL ABOUT JANUARY 1
Lastly, it is important to remember you can set goals for yourself whenever you want.
January 1 is a day like any other!
It is super easy to get sucked into the whole “New Year, New Me” mindset that dictates as soon as the clock strikes 12:00am on January 1, we need to change ourselves.
But goals should start at a time of change or need for change.
If you are simply conforming to the calendar, rather than setting a goal from an organic place of change, your motivation will be lacking.
Some of my proudest achievements this year only came from goals I set halfway through the year!
So, try not to create goals just as part of the New Year festivities.
If you have a goal from this year that you have not yet accomplished, push it over into next year instead of inventing something new that you simply feel you “should” be doing.
That wraps up my top three tips! I am now going to leave you with this quote:
Tomorrow is the first blank page of a 365-page book. Write a good one.
Brad Paisley
Thank you for reading and Happy New Year to my Charles Sturt family!
