It’s that time again when everyone has high hopes for how they are going to better themselves during the new year. The traditional way many people set goals, however, doesn’t seem to be working! According to The Economic Times, only 16 percent of people follow through with New Year’s resolutions. Here are seven alternatives to the traditional New Year’s resolutions that could help you in 2023.
- Make 3, 5, and 10-year goals. Part of the problem with resolutions is they are oftentimes open-ended, such as, I want to lose weight. Instead, write down specific goals for 3, 5, and 10 years from now. Break your goals into categories like family, career, financial, and health. Having concrete future goals is a good starting point to creating an obtainable vision.
- Create better connections. Social media makes it easy to stay in touch with what friends and family are doing, but it often lacks true personal connection. As we exit the pandemic era, consider committing to intentional development of relationships with a list of people that are important in your life. Write out the list and put it in a spot you’ll see every day. Then be consistent communicating with them and taking the time to actually reconnect in a meaningful way.
- Reflect on the previous year. Every year brings its share of happiness, challenges and things you never saw coming. Reflecting on these events is a great way to realize how much you’ve changed and grown over the past year. Whether the changes are positive or not so positive, acknowledging and analyzing will help you grow from your experiences and set you up for a better future.
- Quit something. For most of us, the days are overflowing with things to do and too many bills to pay. Why not take an inventory and quit something? Take back some of your income and time, to allow you to pursue something else or spend money on something more important to you.
- Pretend like you are moving. Walk around your house or apartment and make a list of things you’d like to improve or fix, just like you would do before moving. It can be a big thing like building a deck or a small thing like going through an old closet full of that stuff that you thought you might need someday. Donate it and keep the receipt – it might be a tax deduction!
