23 Actions to Try Out For a Better 2023

Oh, the start of the year! So many plans, ideas, and activities that one wants to try out! And I am no different. It’s never just about setting objectives for me, but also ensuring that I fill my year(s) with activities that I enjoy, that fill my heart with joy and sparkle my brain with positive feel-good hormones.

Rakicevic Nenad, New Year

Every year I add new items to the bucket list, more and more each year. That can feel overwhelming at times and cut the enthusiasm rather than driving motivation. My list has now become rather long and I have a hard time letting go of desired actions. Same as I sometimes have a hard time doing some of my bucket list desires. To smoothen the start of the new year and take advantage of the high energy that I have right now, I selected a few to focus on. Some are crazier, and some are just mundane things that I enjoy doing and I want to do more often. Hopefully, you will find some inspiration too!

23 might sound like a large number of activities to cover in one year. Realistically speaking, it comes down to about 2 per month. Pin some of these down and try them out, too!

Body Movement

1. Go for a walk in the forest — Explore a nearby forest for 2–3 hours! Grab some snacks and drinks along to take some breaks. Bring your camera with you for some nature shots, or just have your mobile phone at hand. Try to either follow one of the routes marked on the trees or just get lost without a clear path in mind. The idea is to immerse yourself in nature as much as you can!
2. Try working out during the lunch break — Before eating your lunch meal! You don’t want to work out on a full tummy. You don’t need to have a very complex training session. Examples that I’ve tried in the past and fit perfectly within 30 minutes are: Light 20 minutes yoga + 5 minutes meditation; 5 mins warm-up + 15 minutes abs + 5 mins stretch; 5 mins warm-up + 20 mins legs + 5 mins stretch; Stretch your neck 5 mins + back 10 mins + hips 10 minutes
3. Walk outdoors for 15 minutes in the morning — Natural light, crisp morning air, and movement seem to be the perfect combo to start the morning. All these elements are meant to energize your body, drop the level of cortisol and help release adrenaline and dopamine at a normal pace, avoiding spikes later in the day. No one explains the neuroscience behind this and the biology of substances better than Andrew Huberman in his Huberman Lab video, so check it out.
4. Start a walking group at work — I need my lunchtime walk! First of all, this will help with the bad pain that I unfortunately often experience. Second, it is a good way to decompress and re-energize. Walking by myself is a good mind-clearer many times, but oftentimes it gets lonely and repetitive since I can only go that far from the office, the routes are rather similar. I occasionally walked with a colleague to the local bakery just to grab something and that was so nice and insightful. Plus it’s a nice chance to get to know someone from the office. Asking around if someone wants to join and receiving a face-to-face “no” can be disappointing. But if there’s a Slack channel, maybe you can start a small movement (pun intended) to get more of your colleagues a bit more active.

Nutrition and Culinary Experiences

5. Go out for a quick meal during your lunch break — When I am in the office I order catering food from our local supplier. When I work from home I would cook something quick and enjoy a freshly made meal. But routine can sometimes become boring, I only know how to cook so many quick meals and usually don’t have enough time, energy, or inspiration to try out something new for lunch. And then the catering company only has so many meals on their menu, too! So why not try one of the local shops or cafes for a change? It does not need to be a proper sit-down two-three-course lunch or a whole one-hour experience; it can also be grabbing a quick bite and sitting in that space or walking while eating. Change your scenery, and your routine to try to challenge and excite your tastes with something different!

6. Experiment with different cuisines from your kitchen — We get to try lots of cousins while traveling, as well as while eating out and I find that interesting and challenging for the senses. A more budget-friendly option is to look for traditional dishes from a particular country and try to cook them at home. Add a Spotify playlist from that country’s music while preparing the meal and eating and you will become fully immersed in the cultural experience! So far I’ve “been” to Portugal, Lebanon, Italy, Vietnam, Germany, and Mexico and I plan to experiment with Thailand, France, South Africa, Brazil, and India.

7. Introduce more savory into my breakfast — It is said that having a savory breakfast, filled with protein, is a great way to start the day and ensure the glucose levels stay in place which then means you avoid energy spikes in the morning. I believe I am already doing a great job at introducing protein into my first meal by consuming lots of yogurt and nuts. Slice of bread with cheese or charcuterie has not been an option for me for years as I am following a gluten-free diet and actively avoiding processed meats. This then means that my breakfasts mainly consist of different kinds of cereals that I mix myself and probably some fruit added to that. I got very used to eating this way, but the more I read about sugar and how it affects our energy levels, the more I want to avoid it first thing in the morning. I already find lots of inspiration in Lisa Brian’s Downshiftology page and in her belief that foods can be consumed at any time of the day, traditional breakfast foods do not need to be just for breakfast, same for traditional dinner or lunch foods that can be moved at breakfast. 2023 is the year to try to make these more of a routine and test the impact that a more savory breakfast will have on my day, my mood, and my energy levels!

8. Homemade snacks — I never had a predominant sweet tooth, something salty is my go-to and what I prefer to munch on. Savory snacks are my feel-good, emotional eating saviors! Especially on a busy day at work, I would end up with those nuts best case, and a less good bag of crisps! I am very conscious that the habit brings lots of calories and fats that I would rather not have. But I can’t help it. I am planning to try and prepare some more nutritious snacks that I can have at hand for when the craving kicks in. I am in no shape or form setting the objective of not snacking because I tried and failed so many times! Just hoping I can make it better and healthier! Any suggestions on what I can start with?

9. Coffee and/or tea breaks from a new shop — Walk to the local coffee shop and try out a tea or a coffee on a Saturday. Take that home and enjoy it while doing errands or reading. Or sip slow sips while sitting on a bench in the park watching people-watching. Or even take a book with you to enjoy in the shop. The idea is to try new tastes, different from the regular ones that you would enjoy in your own home on the weekend. A bit of variety might be interesting!

10. Buy a new product on your weekly shopping — Having shopping lists and knowing how to efficiently and quickly cook a few recipes is amazing! However, ending up buying the same products over and over again can become a little bit boring, right? So why not try adding up a new item in your basket once in a while? It might be a new type of cheese that you have not tried before. Or something completely different. That is how I discovered some very interesting savory snacks, hard shell tacos, olives filled with garlic, and dried ginger.

Social Connections

11. Randomly call a friend, without an appointment or messaging them first — My mum still does this sometimes and I remember there were times when you would just call someone to ask them how they were or share something. In the last few years, we have transitioned so much toward texting! That is all great, but also not so natural, it is sometimes better to hear the other person’s voice as an immediate reaction. We became so bad at receiving unscheduled calls, that I now panic when someone calls me directly without having messaged first! I always think something really bad has happened… So I will try to call someone next time I want to share something rather than message them, without the fear of interrupting, without the fear that they will be scared whether I am alright.

12. Walk and talk (on the phone) — My best way to catch up with friends who live far away is to call them while I am walking. I have 2 friends who live 500 km+ and we have these 60–90 mins catch-ups over the phone every few months when we would both agree on a time to call each other and go out to walk. The best part if both parties are walking is that you can share exactly what you unexpectedly encounter, just like you would do on a regular walk. The plus side is the exercise and extra steps, of course, but I also find it to be super therapeutic, I feel like I can open up even more vs staring at each other while sitting in a cafe.

13. Meet new people at the local yoga center — I have moved a lot in the last 5 years, changing 5 cities in 3 countries and just as many jobs. While I have some great friends who maintain touch even at a long distance, finding new friends or people to socialize with as a grown-up is something that I am struggling with. Right now I work in a different city from where I live, so meeting colleagues after work is not always the most convenient option, unless I am prepared to drive back home in the dark and arrive home late. That leaves the option of finding people in the city where I live who can socialize during the weekend. I saw many ads for yoga classes that also have a quick coffee/tea session afterward, so I plan to try one of those out! I planned this last year too, but found some great excuses down the way: it’s still pandemic, I need to communicate in a language that I do not master, they most likely have a group of friends already so I will be a newcomer. Excuses! I will try to fight them in 2023.

14. Learn a new language with someone — Finding the energy to go language courses after work, while adapting to a new country, job or environment is tough! A more chilled approach like using an app on the train going to work might be a better fit. But I also read a lot about lots of people posting on Facebook groups that they would look for a buddy to meet for a coffee and talk in a language they are trying to learn. While that might not teach you the perfect grammar or pronunciation, it might though be an icebreaker to start to communicate. I live in a uni city and I think meeting some students who are only now starting their careers might also be an interesting way to find out about how the young generation sees life!

Meditation, Journaling, and Mindfulness

15. Monitor your achievements — Adult life does not give you diplomas and prizes anymore as the school does. Nor are there parents and teachers around to highlight your achievements regularly. Your partner might be very good at expressing these things, complimenting you when you’ve done something right, but that does not happen all the time. You might have a manager who is used to offering positive feedback, but again, that is not always the case. So what better to do than monitor your achievements and reward yourself for those? I would normally spend a few minutes (10–15) every other week to meditate about the progress that I made in various areas of my life and things that I am proud of. Writing these down is helpful for me because I can visually see their amount and that makes me feel good. After this introspective time, rewarding yourself with a cup of tea, a walk, and the quietness of listening to an album uninterrupted are only a few ideas to try out.

16. Look at the positives in your life for 2 minutes daily — We all know that bringing more positivity into our lives leads to a more positive perspective. But our minds naturally focus on the less favorable events and we tend to forget that there are also good things that happen to us. It is difficult to make this switch of perspective, but what helped me in the past was to journal about something positive that happened to me that day or something that I really enjoyed during that day. How did I do this? I would set a timer on my phone and write anything that would come to mind, thinking “What happened today that was good for me or that I enjoyed?” Not surprisingly, it is difficult to write for 2 straight minutes in the beginning, though after a few more attempts I realized that I would have enjoyed even more than just 2 minutes on some days! Plus benefit: the mind starts to seek positive events to memorize during the day so that you would have something to fill your notebook’s pages with later on; that means there is a more positive perspective that your mind looks for in any life situation in general. Definitely, something to try out.

17. Take a short lunchtime or mid-afternoon meditation break — I sometimes find it difficult to meditate in the morning as my mind is too eager to start the day and I cannot easily find stillness. Evenings are also difficult for me because I would fall asleep most of the time without finishing the guided meditation in my app. I tried having short 10–15 minute meditations in my lunch break or as a mid-afternoon break a few years back when the pandemics started and they proved to be great in centering me. I enjoy taking quiet breaks and looking inwards calms me down, so meditation during the workday is something that I am planning to include in some of my routines for 2023.

Skincare

18. Sheet masks every Sunday — I find sheet masks a great way to get nutrients into your skin and care for your complexion, basically it’s a great way to vary your face treatments. My ritual on Sunday mornings is to go through my mask “collection”, pick one according to the needs I feel my face skin has on that day and leave it on for 15–20 minutes, while either reading, doing a meditation, or preparing my breakfast. Face masks are discounted many times, so hunting for price drops is a good way to stock up and save some money because these are not always cheap! I also end up with a few extra ones when I am ordering cosmetics online and just miss a few euros to meet the free delivery criteria. My skin definitely thanks me for this ritual!

19. Learn to love body lotion and skin hydration — Although I know that my skin would thank me if I hydrated it more often with body lotions or body butter, the truth is… I am lazy. I am purely lazy. It’s not about the product itself, I tried many options. I get too cold after showering and I just want to cuddle in my PJs in the evening. This happens to me even in the summer! I know, crazy, but once I’ve showered I just want to dress and cozy up in my clean clothes. I tried one strategy a few times and worked, somehow, or to some extent: to miss taking clothes with me into the shower and put the lotion bottle next to the towel; stay in the bathroom until I’ve finished hydrating. I enjoy the feeling of soft, hydrated skin and I am sure hubby does too! But I hate the process, ah! Definitely, something to work on in 2023. (Who would have thought that this would be one of the more “crazy” ones for me, duh?)

20. Take care of those eye wrinkles building up — Ageing can be beautiful, it can be super pretty, right? I have always been good at figuring out someone’s age by the number of wrinkles around their eyes. They are, of course, unpreventable, and they express the emotions we went through in our lives. But why feel like the skin around your eyes is not stretchy or hydrated enough when there are some actions that you could take? I already committed to applying eye cream in the evening, and I want to find a second product that helps wake up my eyes in the morning. That, combined with the occasional eye mask should bring brighter eyes and more relaxation in that area!

Just have a little fun!

21. Watch international movies — Yup, movies with subtitles can be sometimes difficult to follow and many times you might not feel like it, especially after a full day at work. Making your brain do the extra work might leave you more energized at the end compared to binge-watching Friends for the 4th time (not that I don’t do it, and not that Friends is not the best series ever!). For a change and to experience some new cultural aspects, I want to try to watch a few more international movies.

22. Go for a picnic in the local park — I received an amazing picnic basket as a wedding present from my work colleagues. It comes with plates, cutlery, glasses, and even salt and pepper shakers! I researched so many picnic finger foods suitable for picnics but never got around to preparing them. I guess that’s because I imagined there should be 10 different sorts of food that I should include. Like the perfect ones that you see on Instagram. Reconsidering, I think even 2–3 kinds of foods or a few sandwiches should make it a different way of having dinner or lunch, rather than the usual dining or kitchen table! Can’t wait for the warm weather!

23. Stargaze — August is a great month to go stargazing, because of the Perseids; the skies are beautiful, stars fall out of the sky and the nights are warm. You need to find spots that do not have lots of light pollution, though and that can be difficult around larger cities. Since many people are watch stars and passionate about astronomy, the best spots near your city might be well documented, so it might be worthwhile to ask around or search online or on social media groups for the info for your region.

Wow! So much inspiration and so many exciting ideas. I hope I will find the energy, motivation, and desire to step out of my comfort zone in 2023 and try at least some of them out! I strongly encourage you to do the same.