What You Can Do To Prepare for the New Year
1. Reflect on the past year
Take time to think about what happened over the course of this last year. What were some of your best and worst moments? What seemed to work really well for you, and what didn’t? What goals did you achieve, and in what areas did you fall short? This kind of reflection can tend to be overlooked when we think about preparing for the future, but it’s so helpful in order to know ourselves and therefore set us up for success! For example, was one of your goals last year to wake up at 5 am every day, but when you tried it, it made you feel exhausted? What works for some people may not work for you, and that’s okay! Maybe you hadn’t had a good sleep schedule yet to help with the change in wakeup time, or maybe you just get more work done staying up later as opposed to getting up early. This is why it’s so important to look back before looking ahead so that we can set up our goals to actually meet our needs in the best way for us!
2. Try to reconnect with whats really important to you
Now that we looked back at the previous year, there’s still something I feel is very important before going right into our new year’s goals, and resolutions. Sit with yourself and think about what is really important to you. Maybe you already have some resolutions in mind for this upcoming year, but really think, why are these my goals? Commonly, people always say they’d like to eat better, exercise more, but why? Typically people just set these goals because they sound nice, they give the appearance that it means your life will be more together. But rarely do people get very far with goals like these unless they dive a bit deeper. Why would you want to start exercising? Where does it fit with your long-term goals? Maybe it’s to become stronger so you can go on that 3-day hike you always wanted, or maybe it’s to have more energy so you can play with your kids. Taking the time to think about these things more gives you an actual incentive to stick to them.
3.Get focused on your goals, but in a healthy way
Now that we took a step back, we are ready to go forward! What do we want to achieve this year? Thinking about goals always makes me so excited, and inspired! Whether it’s on a digital program like Notion, or maybe just a journal, I highly recommend beginning to write down some of what you hope to achieve this year. Allow yourself this time to just dream big! After that, now we can break these goals up into steps. Things we need to do in order to succeed in achieving the big goal. This makes your dreams not only feel more attainable, but it gives you a real place to start! After you have all your goals in place, and the different steps laid out, this is where its important to remember you can’t do it all at once. If you try to completely change your lifestyle in a week, most likely, none of these new habits will stick. Incorporate things at a pace that you’re comfortable with. It’s much better to only stick to one new habit, than to overwhelm yourself and be back to the drawing board.
4. Declutter, and clean
If you’re similar to me, having an overabundance of things can just make you feel so overwhelmed. For many of us, that is the exact situation we find ourselves in right after the holidays. Having to drag out our winter gear for the season, receiving new things we need to find places for. Winter is the season for hunkering down and nesting. So I like to get one last good clean and organize in before the winter season really begins, and then not have to worry about it until spring cleaning time. A decluttered space equals a decluttered mind, and that’s exactly what we want to try to achieve for the new year!
5. Create a budget , and get your finances organized
Something I find very important and make sure I keep up with is my finances. The beginning of the new year is the perfect time to start keeping your money organized especially if you have not been previously. What I like to do first and foremost is make a list of all my known expenses. Car bill, phone bill, etc, as well as the days they come out. Some people with this first step will find they may be subscribed to things they hadn’t even realized! By doing this you’ll start forming an idea of where your money is going, and when. Next, I like to set up a table In Notion, but you can easily do this on paper as well. Every purchase going forward will be written down. What it is the money is going to, the amount, and the date of it being spent. I swear by doing this now. I consider myself a really good saver, but I often was confused on why I wasn’t saving as much as I thought I should. Writing everything down really proves how quickly money can be spent. Having this information proves to be one of the most helpful tools in your belt when it comes to goal planning, and actually achieving them!
6. Dont be hard on yourself
The most important thing to remember is not to be hard on ourselves. We live in a time that gives us 24/7 access to see all the wonderful things other people are doing with their lives. However, we must remember, that one, that’s just the parts of their life they’re choosing to show. Not many of us wish to showcase our struggles behind the scenes. And two, other people’s successes do not mean we are failing. We are all on completely individual journeys. Just because someone may seemingly be living the life you wish you were, does not mean that you can’t get there too. And just because someone online is promoting a certain routine or habit that makes them happy, that doesn’t mean it will necessarily work for you. Keep the focus centered around you. What works for you, what makes you feel accomplished, what’s just too much to keep up with? Feeling like a failure because you couldn’t meet unrealistic expectations you put on yourself, will only make you feel like you’re going backward. This can be your year! Stay true to yourself, and you will succeed!
