Of course, this year will change you and lead you to grow as a person, but it will happen through the course of the year. Therefore, you need to plan, make marks for yourself you can reach. You’ll never know what will come your way so keep an open mind about possibilities when you start to make your goals.
“New Year New Me”
Excuse me while I gag at yet another person who links the new year with this sudden change. Please stop saying "new year new me." You are the exact same person you were December 31st as you are January 1st. There isn’t some magic dust that is sprinkled on humanity while you're sleeping giving you the power to be kinder, healthier, more active, and so on. You have to work for it and for some reason all of us find January 1st to be the perfect day to do it. Here is the truth, though, you can set goals all year round! Surprise! Amazing right? It doesn’t have to just be January 1st, so if you haven’t set goals yet, grab a pen and some paper and start writing down what you want to accomplish in 2016.
Yes, I said goals if you noticed not resolutions. Resolutions are things you plan to start not things you plan to accomplish. For example, I will start eating healthy or I will start going to the gym, I will be a nicer person or I will get a job offer. Those are things you can’t measure and can’t determine. The problem about resolutions is that there is no definite date, they are to do’s that most of the time we never finish or truthfully never even start. That’s why when the new year comes around we have the same resolutions again because they were to do’s we never held ourselves accountable for. Instead, make realistic goals to complete. Therefore, you can see your progress. Plan some on a monthly scale too so you can adjust your goals based on progress through the whole year. Isn't that what the point is anyway? To do something new for the whole year. Because if it’s just for the first couple weeks in January, just so you can post your new Nikes on Instagram, tweet about going to the gym, and Facebook about being a better person when we all know those Nikes are going to be used as your comfy shoes for school, that gym session was the only time you’ll go this year, and being better person? What the heck does that even mean? Here are some goals you can set for 2016.
1.Stop going out to eat and cook your own meals. Tell yourself you can only go out to eat twice a week so you have a limit you have to stay under. Plan to go grocery shopping every Sunday before the week starts.
2. Read a book at night instead of turning on Netflix. Maybe your goal is to read a new book every month. Close the laptop you've been staring at all day and pick up a book. It gets your brain and imagination going and you’ll feel accomplished when you finish one.
3. I want to be fit and workout. Instead, say I plan to go to the gym at least 4 times a week. Coordinate times in your schedule and don’t be unrealistic, if you haven’t gone to the gym since last January you aren't going to start going every day. You can make a goal to go 3 times in one month then keep increasing the amount every month. Another good option is to find a new yoga class or spin class to start taking once a week.
4. Be a volunteer for your community or a local charity by the end of the year. This gives you time to figure out what's best for you and what will make you happy to help others. Search around at some volunteer opportunities and let yourself know you have the whole year to find one that’s right for you.
5. Go on a trip this summer. This takes planning to make it a goal to start researching in February and organize it all before March. Wanting is one thing, planning to plan and save is another.
6. Start the 70, 50, 20 rule to budget better. Put 70% of your check each month to rent, needs etc. 50% for groceries and fun activities and the remaining 20% in your savings. You’ll be surprised at how much this will help you.
7. Instead of saying I want to eat healthy, count your calories. Such as, I plan to eat fewer than 1200 calories a day. You’ll keep yourself accountable and there are hundreds of apps that will help you do this. You can even log your exercise too. Numbers are goals and are a lot easier to attain when you know what you're reaching for.
8. Talk less, do more. Tell yourself you can’t look at social media during your classes or maybe only one hour a day (whatever is realistic for you). Cut down on it and start spending time doing the experiences you envy others doing on those social media sites. Also, you’ll actually find yourself feeling a lot better when fewer people know what you're doing and thinking all the time.
9. Personal goals can be anything! Maybe you're someone who wants to go out more but usually decides to be a home body. Tell yourself, I’ll go out once a week. Or maybe you're the opposite and you go out too much and need more time to rest and focus, give yourself a limit. Tell yourself what you want to do. Maybe it’s to be more spontaneous or go on more adventures. But figure out how to do that. Plan a trip every couple weeks or figure out what part of you lacks spontaneity and change it.
10. Better person deal? You can’t just say I want to be a better person. You have to figure out what part of you that you feel like you want to work on. Such as, you might want to go out of your way to help someone once a week or give 3 compliments a day. Once you set these bars for yourself it’ll become natural, but becoming a “better person” is generic and different for everyone. Plus you can’t just go to sleep December 31st and wake up January 1st a changed human. No.
11. Set more goals. Successful people are constantly setting more goals for themselves because they are constantly growing, figuring out what they want, and figuring out how they can attain it. Set a new personal goal, career goal, and life goal every month. You are an evolving human, you might not be the same person you are January 1st of 2016 and December 31st of 2016 so keep it updated and fresh. It will keep you focused on what you want. Don’t focus on what not to do, but what you should do. Make your efforts this year be ones you can be proud of.
