Creating lists is therapeutic for me. If you are an avid list-maker like I am, writing lists is a way to de-stress, organize, and enables me to feel in control of my life. One list in particular that I have managed to never complete is the infamous New Year’s Resolution list; however, I might have found a solution with monthly goal lists: Hope-Proud-Wish lists.
I have always been more reserved than the rest of my peers, so I started making these lists before my First-Year Orientation to hold myself accountable for stepping out of my comfort zone by trying new things, meeting new people, and maintaining a clear, healthy mindset and lifestyle overall.
These lists are as easy to create as their titles indicate. At the start of each month, I will create a list of what I hope to accomplish. Throughout the month, I will add to a list of what I am proud of accomplishing. At the end of the month, I will review the proud list, think about how I could have pushed myself even more to out of my comfort zone in order to create a list of what I wish I had accomplished; these items will be copied into the hope list of the following month. The items on each list can be as simple as “Make my bed every morning” and as daunting as “Feel comfortable being alone in a popular spot on campus (such as the dining hall or student center).”
For example:
September 2017 Hope:
– establish an exercise routine
– keep dorm room clean
– drink enough water
– stay organized with school work
– utilize academic resources on campus
– join a club
– meet new people
– keep in contact with parents
– eat healthy foods
– be happy
September 2017 Proud:
– keeping dorm room clean
– staying organized with school work
– utilizing academic resources on campus
– joining a couple of clubs
– meeting new people
– keep in contact with parents
– eating healthy foods
September 2017 Wish:
– established an exercise routine
– drank more water
– met more people
– joined more clubs
– called friends from home more often
– feel more comfortable being alone
– be happier
October 2017 Hope:
– establish an exercise routine
– drink more water
– meet more people
– join new clubs
– call friends from home more often
– feel more comfortable being alone
– be happy
… and so on and so forth. (You can make these lists more or less personal.)
By creating these lists I have forced myself to step out of my comfort zone and as a result I have been happier than I was first semester. I find these lists easier to keep up with in comparison to any list of New Year’s Resolutions since I can break down those larger resolutions into smaller, monthly progressive steps. When I look back at my lists from last semester, I am able to see how much I’ve grown and accomplished personally.