No Years Resolutions
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the word resolution is defined as “the act or process of resolving.” Truthfully, the only thing I hate more than definitions that include the use of the word you are trying to define is probably my inability to keep New Years resolutions. With that being said, according to the same source, the word resolving means, “to deal with successfully,” with a subsequent definition result including“to find an answer to.” I believe that at the root of success is a deep level of understanding… what am I getting at with all of this? Well, I have a flaw (yes, just one) – and this flaw is that I am perpetually unable to successfully carry out New Years resolutions. I took to the dictionary thinking that maybe I am so unsuccessful with this because I don’t understand it, going back to my previously stated belief in the correlation between success and understanding, and with that I have come up with a solution for success… a resolution if you will, on how to fulfill the 365 day contract between myself and my resolutions. I have decided that the best way for me to avoid the fiasco that accompanies another year of broken resolutions is to simply boycott making any. Now, this isn’t a matter of if you don’t try you can’t fail, I have just decided that I don’t agree with what New Years resolutions stand for, so why should I jump on the bandwagon just to end up disappointing myself year after year?
However, don’t get me wrong, I do think it is good and important to go into the New Year with a plan. You know, things you would like to work on and tasks you want to accomplish, but I think that calling these “resolutions” implies that something with the way you are now is wrong and needs fixed, almost like the entire last year was an issue, and this next year is going to be spent trying to compensate for that, and honestly, I think that’s an unhealthy way of viewing life. So this year, instead of working on a list of issues that I feel the need to “resolve,” I am going to navigate my way through 2017 with my New Years GPS. While this is not a literal global positioning system, the idea behind my GPS is similar, have an end destination, and follow a path in order to get there. My GPS – goals, perspectives, success – and a plan to work on guiding myself to get where I want to be this year. Maybe I’ll take a few wrong turns, maybe I’ll miss a ramp or take the wrong exit, but at the end of the day, that’s why my GPS is there, to remind me of that final destination, and help me reroute in order to get there.
With the New Year in mind, there are many things I would like to accomplish. In the past, that sentence would have read, “With the New Year in mind, there are many things I would like to change,” but I’m thinking differently now, and it might sound strange, but I trust that this slight modification of thinking will yield grand results. So let me break down this GPS for you, and show you why.
Goals -
Making a list of 100 things I want to accomplish this year wouldn’t be hard, but ever since making my “now” and “later” inspiration boards, I have realized that what works best for me is setting a few short term and a few long term goals, rather than just having a running list of ALL of the goals I want to achieve. This gives me specific things that I want to work on and accomplish in an allotted amount of time. While on my inspiration boards my short-term goals were monthly and my long-term goals were for every six months, for my GPS goals, my short-term will still be months, but my long-term will be for the year. So I plan on switching out my short-term goals every month, and add to my long-term goals as I think of them. It’s always best to start off slow, so for now I am going to start with four total goals, two for the month of January (now goals), and two complete by the end of the year (later goals).
Now:
1. Get up at least three blog posts this month (one down!)
2. Go to the gym at least 3 days a week
Later:
1. Read at least 12 books, one each month, and review each book with a blog
2. Get a new job (something in my field)
Perspective –
With graduating college, moving states, changing jobs, moving apartments and so on, my physical perspective on life was forced to change a lot over the last year. This year, I want to work on expanding my mental perspectives as well. To me, that includes a lot of different things. I want to spend this year learning about others- other people, other cultures, other point of view, and with this knowledge, I want to determine exactly what is important to me. My passions, ethics, beliefs and more have been brought into question a lot, and I have found new things that matter to me, and on the contrary, I have determined there are matters that no longer are important to me, such is growing up. I really want to hone in on this part of my life, and make it more of an active priority to focus on, rather than just a random passing thought. I am at a point in my life where my morals play a large role in the company that I keep, the things that I do, and the decisions that I make, and therefore, I want to spend 2017 fearless of stepping out of my comfort zone of having safe, comfortable perspectives.
Success –
I have decided that 2017 is going to be a year full of success – of course taking every necessary step in order to be successful but also taking the time to properly celebrate success… even the tiny victories. Not only do I want this year to be full of triumph, but I also want to keep track of these moments, so I can look back at the end of the year. Whether it’s writing all of these moments down, capturing them on film, or simply snapping a picture, I just want to make sure I am taking the time to acknowledge these moments, all of these moments, no matter how big or small, because why the hell not. Life is too short not to celebrate as much as possible, and I am taking action to ensure that I take advantage of these moments this year. I can already add “ringing in the New Year with my best friends” to the very top of this list. Sound like success to me.
Let’s do this year right. I can’t control all that will happen in the next 365 days, but I can control how I handle and respond to what happens. As long as I follow my GPS, I know I will make it where I need to go. Cheers to 2017, bees!
XOXO,
Lexie
BB
