I prefer to go into the new year with the mindset of “new year, better me” rather than “new year, new me.” Instead of wanting to change myself completely, I want to better myself as a whole. Going into 2023, I wanted to set realistic goals for myself to have the best year possible and below I listed some of the goals that I have for the new year and maybe some that you can benefit from too!
- Learning to say no
I often find myself getting stressed and way over my head more than I need to. This is because I commit myself to too much and get stressed trying to manage it all. I need to learn to say no to people when I know it’ll just stress me out, but, it’s hard for me when I want to make everyone happy and please everybody. Another reason stems from me wanting to avoid conflict. I do not want to disappoint others and let them down. Going forward, I am committing myself to being honest and if I am not up to doing something, then I’m not doing it. I know it’s easier said than done, but I know that eventually, I will feel stress free being honest with myself and others.
- Turning my phone off one night a week
Now this is a BIG one for me. I can admit I am addicted to my phone and using social media, but, I do not want to depend on it the same way I do now going forward. When I went to London, I couldn’t use my phone at all unless I had Wi-Fi, which I did not have most of the time. Honestly, it was the best detox ever. Not having to worry about school, responding to peoples texts, and scrolling through social media made me live in the moment. I realized not being able to use my phone at any second helped me stay present and take in the little moments more. Going forward, I want to turn off my phone at least once a week to soak up all the moments surrounding me in life that I often miss.
- Self-love
Self-love is something a lot of people, especially women, struggle with. I am nicer to others than I am to myself and this stems from a lack of self-confidence. I want to trust myself more and realize what I am capable of so I can build a stronger relationship with not only myself, but with others. I find myself taking out my own insecurities on others sometimes and I want to improve on that.
- Don’t buy things I don’t need
Last semester I would spend money like it was no object and it bit me back hard. I was running super low on money since I wasn’t working during that time, and my work study paid me little. Most of my money was being spent on food and random items I definitely did not need to spend money on.
Some of the changes that I already made going into the new year is eating the groceries I buy instead of ordering takeout or buying food on campus. I’ve already noticed a difference in my bank account. I’m not flying through money the way I was before because I’m making home cooked meals which also lead me to eating healthier. Another investment I made was buying a Keurig machine. I used to spend money every day on Starbucks which added up overtime. Now, I make my hot and iced coffee at home, which is still delicious.
Overall, my only hope is to make myself a better person. These goals may take more than a year but I know I have been taking the steps towards the right direction. I’m excited for what’s to come.