New Year, New You And Other Lies We Tell People.
Hear me out! Every year we put a tremendous amount of pressure on ourselves to be better than we were the year before. So much pressure, in fact, we give up so early in the year that we end up feeling horrible about ourselves. Then we make promises to those around us that we will do better next year. Why do we do this to ourselves? New Year’s resolutions are great ideas, but the pressure that accompanies them is dumb.
Why don’t we stop lying to ourselves and just live better? Take small steps to do better than before. If you want to save money, start small. A little here and there, a new savings account, or start using a piggy bank. Do you want to exercise? Start small, keep a food diary, snack better, or just start to exercise for a short amount of time each week. Do you want to have a better outlook on life? Start small, keep a gratitude journal, say thank you more, or even pray more. These are little things that we can surely turn into habits and incorporate into our lives easily with little to no pressure. If you don’t keep a gratitude journal, that’s okay, you still said thank you and prayed. If you didn’t start a new savings account, that’s okay; you can put all of your change for a week in a new piggy bank. You see where I’m going with this?
There is no need to put so much pressure on yourself to lose 50 pounds in two months, just to find you gained another 25 pounds in addition to what you wanted to lose. Then you end up feeling worse about yourself than you did when you started. Be excited to make small changes. Set S.M.A.R.T goals and stick to the paradigm of those types of goals. S.M.A.R.T goals are those Specific, Measurable, Assignable, Realistic, and Timely.
If you miss a beat, you can just pick up where you left off. No need to give up for the rest of the year. We can improve ourselves with little things just as easily as we can with the big things. A smile goes a long way, reaching a personal goal helps motivate us to reach others, doing something small can become a big deal down the road. Stop telling others you are going to do this or that and just do what you can. Stop lying to yourself and others and share that you will do better with small steps and small goals. Start now by giving yourself a break and just promising yourself that you won’t give up on improving yourself. That looks different to everybody, so just stay focused on what you can do for you and this will, in turn, be good for those around you.
So, my advice is to stay the same you for the new year, just start to improve what is already a good foundation. If you fail, just keep pushing. If you don’t reach a goal, set another one or keep trying, if you don’t want to then don’t! This is your life, and however, you feel comfortable and happy living it, do it!
