The New Year means a new beginning, and that calls for the annual act of drafting New Year’s resolutions! Each year, I find myself making new resolutions that I am able to follow for about a week, but then my boredom kicks in, and I lose all the motivation to stay within the guidelines I set for myself to meet my goals. Upon failing to follow those resolutions I tell myself that “I can just follow that resolution next year”.
For the past 19 years, I have made promises to myself at the beginning of each year that based on their rate of completion, can be deemed completely futile. However, when it comes to not following through with New Year’s resolutions, I know I’m not alone. And so, this year I decided to stop making these promises to myself, and instead be picky about resolutions and focus on what I know will be beneficial in the long run. So, here’s five New Year’s resolutions that are easy to follow – and that you should consider keeping.
I decided to divide my New Year’s resolutions into 5 distinct categories.
- Self
Above all, it’s important to put yourself first in order to recognize and become familiar with what resonates with you. To do this, try and spend more time with yourself! This does not require being alone, but rather means doing tasks that help to encourage self-reflection. For instance, taking frequent walks, spending time doing hobbies that are fulfilling, or even meditating for 30 minutes everyday. Engaging in activities like these will help you find out new things about yourself and the world around you as you learn to make yourself your number one priority.
- Financial
Being a student, budgeting is something that I have always found slightly challenging, and the New Year is a fantastic opportunity to take charge of your financial life and attempt at budgeting. Tracking down your daily financial habits is a great way to keep a record of all the unnecessary or avoidable expenses that may need reevaluating. This way, you can save some extra cash at the end of every month and use it to your needs. One thing that I have done with that extra money saved thanks to budgeting, is to use it on self-care. This self-care budget does not need to have a high spending limit, and can be something as low as £20. You can use this budget for anything that gives you joy! For instance, treat yourself to your favorite meal, get your nails done, get a blow out at the salon, the list goes on!
- Health
The most important thing before you set any kind of a health goal is to remember to base your fitness goals on feeling good instead of on simply looking good. Choosing to eat healthy is a great way to kickstart your physical health goals (and of course this does not mean cutting down on junk completely: it’s okay to give in at times). Along with healthy eating, indulging in some form of physical exercise like zumba, spin, etc. would also be beneficial in the long run as a healthy practice to maintain for the body and mind. Lastly, taking care of your mental health is equally as important as taking care of your physical health. One excellent way of doing this, in my opinion, is trying a social media detox. To be honest, I have never tried doing one because I cannot imagine living without my phone. But, I hope to do at least 3 social media detoxes before the start of 2023.
- Career
Career related resolutions are an easy way to keep up with productivity levels throughout the year. For instance, one of my career resolutions is to read more books in the field that I aspire to build a career in and engage more actively with people working in the field at present so as to learn from their experiences.
- Environmental
With environmental degradation rising with each passing day, it’s important that we set resolutions that promote healthy environmental practices. This could include something as simple as reducing the consumption of single-use plastics and switching to a sustainable alternative – instead of using disposable razors, you can start using a safety razor that is eco-friendly and waste-reducing for the environment. Moreover, other ideas could include shopping more mindfully– capsule wardrobes are gaining popularity as the fast fashion industry is being exposed for their wasteful production culture.
You obviously don’t have to keep these five resolutions listed above; keep whichever ones resonate the most with you and that you would be comfortable following in the long run. And please, try not to be hard on yourself. Instead of mandating the fact that you need to follow these resolutions everyday, instead attempt to follow these resolutions regularly. Building good habits and making positive changes to your lifestyle is a gradual process that does not happen overnight. It truly takes time to develop true change, given you are willing to ignite that change.