New Year’s resolutions are easy to make … and more difficult to keep.
Still, that shouldn’t stop you from making 2022 your best year yet!
Research shows that about 80 percent of New Year’s resolutions fail within the first month, according to Forbes. How can you make them stick? Make sure you are setting goals that are specific, measurable, and time-bound.
So keep things simple. Don’t just write down a long list of 100 items. Pick 3-5 that are very important to you. Up to ten. But always know your top 3 priorities.
As you write them and set your priorities, think how each item on the list will get you closer to becoming the person you’d like to be.
Ultimate goal: Create a life you don’t need to escape from.
What can be the best New Year’s resolutions?
And which New Year’s resolutions could help you get closer to that future you?
1. Love yourself more.
Make it a mindset and a habit – to love yourself more.
How? Pamper yourself on a regular basis – because you deserve it.
If you develop this healthy mindset, you will naturally attract other good things in your life. You’ll strive for the best – and be the best version of yourself yet.
When you love yourself, you live on another level, another vibe. It can only improve your life. It will improve your mental state. You can only feel better, more confident, more secure, and happier. You will create space for new and amazing things to happen.
You cannot truly love and help other people until you learn to master this skill with your life.
By taking up the chance to love yourself first, you can inspire other people to make that same change. Once that happens, you can create a better life for yourself – and inspire others too.
2. Pamper yourself more.
From idea to action – from learning to love yourself (developing the mindset) to actually loving yourself (practicing self-love). Make this on a regular basis, ideally daily.
Set aside 10-30 minutes every day to engage in something that will make you happy, reduce stress and ideally enhance your well-being, creativity, mental power. Eat a nutritious breakfast, move your body, spend some time in the nature, spa days or simple bubble baths, lazy afternoons reading a book on a coach, do something fun, create a bedtime routine, watch a good movie. Hit the pause button of your life and give yourself some space to meditate or just exist.
Self love can act as a trigger for personal growth and will help you avoid procrastination to create the life of your dreams.
Schedule self-love in your calendar just as you would any other important thing in your life. Allow yourself pampering. Because you’re worth it!
3. Invest in your health.
Get in shape: Weight loss is a top resolution for Americans, and something that over a third of the population wishes to achieve. How do you achieve this? A simple way is calories deficit – eating less and exercise more.
However, weight loss by itself won’t keep you healthy. You need quality food.
So eat more veggies. Start each day with a nutritious breakfast. It is, after all, the most important meal of the day! Prepare something with fresh and wholesome ingredients, like a tasty smoothie or veggie-filled omelet. Your body will thank you.
Nourish your creativity. Try new healthy recipes to nourish your health and creativity. Finding ways to cook healthier ingredients is a great step toward a healthier, happier life.
Have more meals, but reduce their intake – eat in smaller plates and refill if needed. Ideally, you should have 5 meals – 3 main ones and 2 healthy snacks such as a banana, a handful trail nuts, a protein bar.
Drink more water. It is important for a radiant skin, a more balanced diet, to cut off food cravings and help you lose weight, concentrate better, and so much more. Drinking more water is always a good New Year’s resolution!
Exercise – practice some kind of physical activity. Whether you go to the gym, take more walks, take the stairs – it can be beneficial for your physical health and mental well-being. Some experts believe that 10,000 steps are a must (that’s about five miles a day) and you can easily track them on your phone.
So invest in your health. You need to see it as a long-term investment in yourself – no random acts, but habits that will shape your ideal lifestyle.
4. Invest in your relationships.
You are the product of the 5 people you spend the most time with – so choose wisely. Invest in quality relationships that can make you better, help you grow. Stay away from negative people that only drain you.
For memories that will last a lifestime, spend quality time with family and closest friends.
For personal growth, spend more time with people you disagree with ideologically. This is how new ideas come to life.
But proceed with care. Practice saying ‘no.’ If you are a people pleaser, learn to set boundaries and manage your time effectively. It will also help you have time for the most important things that matter to you the most.
5. Read more.
This is a staple resolution, but in reality, 70% of people don’t read more than one book per year. So you have a massive opportunity to be better than other people simply by reading more.
By reading, you can be different people at different times. Books are a magic portal to connect with people from the past and the present. They are a source of collective intelligence.
So read books and diversify your knowledge. Read to learn, to experience, to understand more about the world and about human nature. Read about the world history, mythology, geography, art. Read biographies of smart people, powerful people, unique individuals who shaped history.
Keep it simple; make a list of five books you want to read now, buy them and place them in a place where you can see them.
6. Become financially secure.
Get your finances in order and make sure your account balance is positive. Look after your finances and keep it simple: spend less than you make, and save up for the big-ticket items until you can afford them.
• Improve your financial literacy.
• Create a budget.
• Save for retirement and other long-term plans.
• Save for short-term (starting an emergency fund as a safety net) and mid-term plans: Each time you feel like buying something, put that money in your piggy bank.
• Pay off debt and feel light at heart.
• Build good credit.
• Earn more money.
Even billionaires are always looking for ways to earn more money, and we common folk can definitely use an additional source of income to make life a bit more comfortable.
Having a good relationship with money is important as money can make us feel secure as we provide for ourselves and others we care for, help reduce stress by creating a safety net, help achieve your dreams such as scheduling a dream vacation, better education and personal development. Money can buy a lot of things, especially in a global market.
But while money can’t buy happiness, health, true connections, they can provide more comfort and piece of mind. You can buy medicines, but you cannot buy health, so make sure you don’t get to the point to sacrifice your health to pursue wealth.
So set financial goals – a good place to start is to save 10% of your income on a regular basis (monthly). The more the better, but at least 10% to begin with.
7. Have a positive approach to life.
View the glass a half full instead of half empty is a good mindset, even if you struggle to find practical solutions to your problems.
Laugh more. Read positive books, jokes, watch comedies, socialize.
Make yourself more interesting. Take a course, class, or adopt a hobby. Pursue an interesting and creative hobby that can contribute to your personal growth.
Be open to new ideas. Develop a growth mindset. What worked yesterday might not work tomorrow, accept it. When you fail, learn from it and don’t repeat the mistakes.
Laugh more and love life. It is said that laughter is the best medicine, at least from a preventive side. If you cannot laugh, at least smile more often.
8. Get enough sleep.
Getting an average of 7-8 hours of quality sleep each night (ideally going to bed before 10 p.m.) is important for your physical and mental health.
Quality sleep reduces stress and prevents burn-out, while sleep deprivation can lead to serious health problems, can impact your mood, concentration, and performance.
Become an early bird if necessary. As much as you may hate waking up early, it can be the key to a happier and more full filled life. Very successful people typically wake up before 5 a.m. and exercise, read, strategize or simply plan their day.
But you don’t need to if you don’t feel comfortable. Just try to get the average of 7-8 hours of quality sleep on a regular basis, and pamper yourself more.
Pro Tip: Invest in a high quality mattress.
9. Create a bucket list.
Collect here all things you want to try in a lifetime or would benefit your personal growth.
What’s something you’ve always wanted to do but never made the time or had the funds to make happen until now? Do that thing. You deserve it.
Take a vacation by yourself. Now’s the time to book the trip of a lifetime—or, at the very least, start saving for it.
Make a movie and books bucket list. Think about what courses you would like to take, what would help you develop on a personal and professional level.
10. Hit the pause button on life and just exist.
Let your mind wander. Let your creativity and ideas come to the surface. Just exist.
Spend more time outside. Take more walks – a simple walk can be beneficial for your health and well-being. Breathe fresh air, meditate, enjoy spending time in nature.
Schedule a social media detox – stay away from all electronic devices and give your brain and eyes a much deserved rest.
To get the most out of your downtime, you should do things you enjoy – such as take a bubble bath, listen to relaxing music, practice yoga, or read a good book in the park. Or have a city break to a beautiful destination from your bucket list.
By giving yourself a break from time to time, you allow your mind to relax and flourish. By slowing down you are paying attention to the world around you, and you are allowing yourself to slow down in order to speed up later. One paradox of speeding down is quality – being fast allows us to do more. But “doing more” does not equal quality.
As a wrap, your resolutions should bring you closer to your ideal life. You have the opportunity to create a life you don’t need to escape from!
Here’s to a better and happier 2022!