Resolving not to make resolutions
At the start of each new year, lots of people resolve to make significant changes. Not me. I don’t make resolutions. I create habits.
In 2020, I aimed to gain confidence. I used that overarching theme to set attainable goals. I wanted to feel beautiful for my October wedding, so I embarked on a fitness and wellness challenge. I lost a significant amount of weight, was fueling my body correctly and felt terrific. Confidence, here I come!
Then, the pandemic hit.
Gyms closed, so my workout routine was out. Stress was at an all-time high, so I relied on comfort food rather than the healthier options I’d been eating. I picked snacks and meals that soothed my soul but didn’t nourish my body.
I’m trying to be kind to myself. I tell my body, which doesn’t look precisely as I wish it did, that it carried me through an unprecedented global pandemic. I thank it for getting me through some challenging times. And, hey, at least drinking 64 oz. or more of water each day stuck. Small wins, right?
Maybe you, too, didn’t accomplish all you set out to do last year. Remember that wedding I mentioned set for last fall? Still on hold.
What am I working on for 2021? Journaling. I have half-started journals tucked everywhere. Diaries purchased with good intentions are quickly abandoned.
I sit down to write about my day, and the blank page overwhelms me. Nothing happened today, I think to myself, over and over, until yet another pretty notebook is stuffed in a neglected drawer. So this year, I bought new journals with specific goals: one has space for three things you’re grateful for each day, and the other has a small space for a line every day to summarize the events, however major or insignificant. In this way, I’m setting myself up for success. So far, I’ve taken the five minutes to jot down my thoughts and gratitudes at the end of each day.
Maybe you’ve always wanted to start a business? Well, we’ve got plenty of inspiration in this edition.
Take Lindsey Bricker, who started Sugar Sugar Scrub in 2009, but quit her day job five years ago, to focus solely on her line of handmade skincare products. She had always dreamed of being able to stay home with her kids and run her own business, and she was finally able to make that ambition a reality. Or maybe Mediterra Cafe’s newest Mt. Lebanon location is more your style.
I hope whatever you’re setting out to achieve this year, you’re kind to yourself.
Don’t kick yourself for where you’ve fallen short before. Recognize your strengths and weaknesses and use them to your advantage. Yes, 2021 is a fresh start and an opportunity to take inventory of your life and see what you might like to work on. But also realize that developing and breaking habits take work. Make a plan. Put in the time. Here’s to cultivating positive habits and replacing destructive ones with something fulfilling.