10 Ways To Make 2018 A Good Year

I have been thinking to myself, what can I do to make this New Year a good year. What can I  do better? I came up with many ideas, but I listed only 10 of them. 

Start a journal. A journal to put your thoughts and ideas in one spot.  It`s a good way to sort out feelings, to brainstorm or to just let out what you feel you can`t say out loud. Take a few minutes to write goals or before bed to review the day`s accomplishments and best moments. Writing them down can be therapeutic. It`s wonderful to look back on. I have started a journal before, but I kind of neglected it and later picked it up again and read some interesting and funny information that I`d written. It brought back some memories. So I decided to get back at it and write out my ideas and thoughts and track how I felt about everything that happened on that day.

Get involved. This past year I have felt the need to do more in my community.  Whether it`s volunteering, doing a neighborhood clean-up, donating time and/or food to the local. Besides the benefit of helping others, you`ll meet new people, build self-confidence, and develop new skills. I am contributing to my community and hopefully making it a better place.

Stay Sharp. Keep up with new technology trends by reading or seek training to learn new things.

Plan A Vacation. I vacationed out of the country for the last few years or so, and I love it! Anticipating a fun event boosts overall happiness, so plan to spend a  weekend or a full week adventure away from home.

 Improve Your Health. Do something that will make you feel better. Drink more water. Try not eating refined sugar. Cut Out Soda. Try meatless meals. Try a cardio dance class, which is something I do every week and I love it because I`m getting a great workout while having fun. I`m learning some new dance moves which are always interesting. Maybe it`s time to try walking or running around your neighborhood or even a nearby park.

Shop consciously.  In the past when I have gone clothe shopping and saw something that I thought was cute, I would go try it on and as long as it was a good fit I would buy it. I would go home and hang up all my new buys and think nothing else about it. A week or two later and sometimes days later I would repeat the same thing. Buy more clothes.

I would color coordinate my clothes on the hanging rack in my closet. And it wasn`t until it was a struggle to move all those clothes around just to find a particular color blouse. I then realized I had 3-4 black blouses that look almost identical and at least 10 pairs of jeans most of them are the same color blue and not that much different. I said to myself “this is ridiculous, this is way too many clothes and many of them still had price tags on them which means that I haven`t even worn them yet. Which tells me that I really didn`t need them and I`m wasting money.

I decided to be more conscious of my spending. I developed a plan, a strategy, a reason for going shopping. During my shopping expedition, I stay focused on what I`m there to buy and to keep that front and center. And there is no randomness to the shopping trip where I wander thoughtlessly from rack to rack, with no clear thought about what it is I`m looking for. This is not to say I don`t enjoy all the other lovely things on display. I just don`t want to be vulnerable to every alluring table display and mannequin displaying gorgeous things that I don`t need. For some of you, this element of shopping consciously alone will change how you shop. And you will have more money to spend on more important things.

Be More Present. With every year, it seems like there`s more and more stuff that encourages online contact which requires being in front of a screen. While I love the convenience of it, it seems like I`m not present in my day to day life because there`s always a screen in my face. Life is too short to not embrace and appreciate the small things like sending a thoughtful card to a friend. Pick up the phone to have a conversation with a relative who you haven`t spoken to in a while. Watch movies together as a family. Give the gift of time and attention to someone else more often.

Maintain A Positive Attitude. Positive thinking is at the forefront of every great success story. The mind must believe it can do something before it is capable of actually doing it. So be aware of your mental self-talk. Start listening to your thoughts. If you hear negative thoughts, stop and replace them with positive thoughts.

Forgive People and Move Forward. Don`t live your life with hate in your heart. You will end up hurting yourself more than the people you hate. Forgiveness is not saying, “What you did to me is okayâ€. It is saying, “I`m not going to let what you did to me ruin my happinessâ€.  The less time you spend hating the people who hurt you, the more time you`ll have to love the people who love you.

Try New things. Doing the same exact thing every day hinders self-growth. If you keep doing what you`re doing, you`ll keep getting what you`re getting. Growth happens when you change things. Do something different.

Happy New Year!