A New Way to a New Year
Wellness Wednesday- A New Way to a New Year!
It`s a new year and a new you! — I think we have all heard this phrase and probably secretly hoped that it was true for us. If your like me, you`ve made resolutions and then a few weeks later your good intentions are forgotten in the daily hustle of life.
So the question is - How do we make this year different from the rest?
A DIFFERENT MINDSET
When you think about the typical resolution, it usually consists of changing things we don`t like about ourselves or things we feel guilty about- Losing weight, living up to other`s standards etc. etc. What if this year you decide to make changes based on what matters to you (and maybe losing that extra 10lbs isn`t on the list) and only you? What if you only make a list of things that inspire and nourishes you? How different would your list look like? Sit down to do this with the knowledge that who you are right now and where you are in life is perfect for this moment. You are doing the best you can with what you have and all you can do is go forward from here. :)
GOALS
Goals are what you set so that you can accomplish your dreams and your aspirations. They are what give your life ambition and purpose.They can be as big as starting a Fortune 500 company in 5 years or as simple (and awesome!) as traveling to 1 new country each year. We all have the same 24 hours a day yet we all know those people that seem to take a day and accomplish 3x as much as the rest of us. So, what`s the difference? Studies have shown that setting goals are a big part of successful people`s lives and that routinely making new ones (big and small) keep them on track with attaining what they want from life. Studies have also shown why certain techniques to goal setting work and why some don`t — like the typical New Year`s resolutions. Here are a few tips that can be useful in starting the process….
* Be true to yourself in this process. Ask yourself the hard questions about your goals- Will this goal enhance things in my life or just to look better for other people? Will this truly feed my soul or is this for acceptance from certain relationships in my life? Am I making this goal because this is what society says I should accomplish or because it`s aligned with my standards?
* WRITE THEM DOWN. Sounds ridiculous to have to say but honestly this is where a lot of people stop when it comes to planning and making their resolutions. Just saying it out loud won`t keep you motivated. Writing it down can help you feel more accountable to them and when you keep the list somewhere you`ll see daily, it helps keep you focused on what you want.
* Separate your goals into sections instead of making them broad. Set specific goals for each area of your life: your business, family, marriage, spirituality, finances, health etc. If that seems a bit overwhelming, pick your top 3 areas you`d like to make some changes in and start there.
* Make your goals attainable - this is where breaking your goals up into different timelines can be helpful in making sure you don`t look at them as unachievable dreams. I just went through a course where they recommend starting from the top: Start with what you`d like your life to look like overall, next work on your 5-10 year plan. Once finished, set goals for the next year that work toward achieving your plan. Then write out monthly goals that help achieve what you want in the next year. Finish with what you`ll do daily to work towards your big picture. When I broke it down like that, I quickly saw how manageable and realistic my dreams and goals really were. They were no longer scary and intimidating. Isn`t that one of the biggest reasons we sabotage ourselves repeatedly with our resolutions? The fear of not knowing what to do or how to make things happen?
Example: One of my (within the next) 5 year plans is to get into Beekeeping.
Instead of just going out, buying a couple hive boxes, getting a bee suit and hoping that a swarm of bees magically come to my box I should probably get a bit educated on the subject first, right?
So here I break it up into attainable goals that make becoming a beekeeper more realistic.
5 year plan: become a beekeeper
2 year plan: buy the hive, suit and all necessary equipment
1 year plan: take classes on beginning beekeeping
Month of Feb: Start classes, buy books
This week: Pay for classes
Daily: Spend 15 min day reading about beekeeping
* This is a VERY important step: Understand the process you`ll need to go through to achieve your goals. Science shows that just sitting around fantasizing about your dreams actually tricks your brain into thinking it`s already been accomplished. Then we lose motivation. So shift your mindset and focus on what you need to do to complete your dream instead. No one becomes a millionaire or even a yoga teacher overnight. Each requires knowledge, experience, investment of your time and money and possibly some sacrificed Friday nights out. If you become stuck on the over all outcome of your goal, you are more likely to get discouraged and fail. This can be the hardest yet most rewarding and sacred part of attaining your goal. Hardly anything in life, worth having, comes easily.
MAKE A VISION BOARD
This is a great sidekick to your list of goals. There are lots of ways you can do them and no one way is better. Just do what works for your personality. Grab a poster board or a cork board, some magazines or print things up you want to add. Have fun with it and be creative. Add inspiring quotes, pictures of places you might want to visit, dishes you want to learn how to cook, hobbies you are interested in taking up or even that crazy yoga pose you want to conquer this year. Add things that line up with your intentions. This is completely yours to personalize. I have made one the last two years on a cork board that hangs above my nightstand. It is the first thing I see when I wake up and the last thing i see before I go to bed. It helps keep me focused and it is fun to see how my values and tastes change from year to year.
ENVIRONMENTALLY CONSCIOUS
During this time, I recommend trying to surround yourself with other people that are working towards their goals so you can encourage each other through this process.
Ever heard of the quote, “You are the average of the top 5 people you spend time with.”? If you surround yourself with people that never seem to get anything done or would rather complain about their circumstances, chances are you will lose motivation quick. Don`t have friends (yet) that are goal-oriented like you? Read books on it and download some podcasts to listen too for encouragement. I listen to one every morning called Quote of the Day by Sean Croxton that I highly recommend. It ranges from 3 to 15 min. Every day there are different motivational speakers with topics pertaining to changing lifestyle habits, money mindset and overcoming pasts and fears. Great thing to add to the morning routine. The more you make your goals apart of your life and thought pattern the more likely you will stick to them.
Much love and Happy New Year,
Melissa Kelly
I hope that some of these ideas will inspire you to dig deep and make this year truly different and one step closer to living your full potential!
