The pressure to make and stick to New Year’s resolutions is quickly spreading earlier into December than ever before. Gyms, food companies, bottled water brands, and more want you to drop pounds, change your routine, and learn to multiply yourself so you can be everywhere at once. It can be a lot! That’s why we’ve created some realistic, small, achievable goals so you don’t have to feel anxious in the New Year. Not reading this until after the New Year? Don’t worry. These goals work just as well on January 21st as January 1st.
Wake-up 15min earlier than normal.
Look, we understand that sleep is awesome. Closing our eyes at night and peacefully drifting off to Dream Town is one of the best parts of the day. However, giving yourself an extra 15 minutes in the morning can be just as awesome. Use that time to do some reading or journaling to quietly wake up your mind for the day ahead. You could also do some light stretching or meditation to ease into your day. Lighting up your muscles, joints, and brain, and focusing on your day with intention can really start things off on the right foot. Even using the extra 15 minutes to simply get an early start on your morning routine can help reduce stress and do wonders for your body and mind.
Take a break and take some steps.
We’ve all been told about the long-term damage sitting at a desk all day can do to our bodies and brains. Between staring at a screen, sitting in a non-ergonomic chair, and lightly tanning under fluorescent lights, the impact of a low-key desk job is surprisingly high. But you can easily counteract some of that by adding some movement to your day. Every hour or two get up from your desk and let curiosity be your trainer. You can take the stairs to say hi to a co-worker on another floor, make your next meeting a walking meeting to a nearby coffee shop, or just grab a handful of papers and a folder and walk around the office with purpose. If you are carrying a folder with papers in it and a determined look on your face, then no one will question where you’re going—somewhere important, obviously. You get a little exercise, give your eyes a break, and get some new air in your lungs.
Find some quiet.
Our lives can be noisy. TVs, traffic, music in elevators, and Jerry from Shipping telling you all about his new fishing boat, all add up to a lot of ambient noise all around us. It can be great for stress levels and peace of mind to just find a little bit of quiet every day wherever you can. Maybe it’s taking time at night to sit in a room with lights low and all screens and notifications off. Maybe it involves sitting in your car for a couple minutes at the start or end of your commute with the radio and car off. Maybe you need to walk into the woods, find a good tree to sit under, and be very still for a few minutes. Either way, give your senses a chance to breathe with some nice silence.
Listen to your mother. Eat some veggies.
We don’t want to tell you how to fully live your life, but it’s time you start listening to your mother’s advice and add some veggies to your plate. No, french fries or mashed potatoes don’t count (much to our own chagrin) because of the salt, fat, et cetera. We’re talking some good old-fashioned broccoli, spinach, carrots, and more. You don’t have to go full vegetarian, but just adding a few veggies to your weekly dinner (or lunch) plates can go a long way for your health. You can even branch out and try the Swedish staple, Pressgurka (/press-GER-kuh/), a pressed and pickled cucumber side dish. Small steps are a good way to create big change, so give it a shot. Sautéing some broccoli to go along with a steak or chicken is easy, and, we’d bet, much tastier than you remember.
Get way into spiritual homeopathy, open a luxury crystal shop, and become a guru.
This may seem pretty far out there compared to everything else on this list, but the healing powers of crystals really are a wonderful way to align your chakras and heal your spirit by — Just kidding. Don’t do this.
Happiest of New Years to you all. We’re pulling for you, and best of luck on those resolutions!
