As the year opens up to us, we think about the endless possibility of how our lives could change. When the ball drops, we resolve to do better this time. "This is my year!" we tell ourselves. "I"m going to get in shape, read more, and find the best career for me." These are just a few examples of what we profess. Our New Year's Resolutions are in full force. Somehow that last shot of tequila will cleanse the old and bring in the new. Or it will make us pass out. Either way something happens.
I have been guilty of this myself. I make resolutions. I make plans that I just know will work out this time because I got a new planner that will help me map out my goals. The vision board has me doing the things to manifest man! It's all a joke right? Maybe. But, I still resolve to do better every new year. There is something magical about the reset right? I mean we all feel it.
Fo this year, I have added a few things, including trying to make this blog a priority. But overall, I resolve to do better through out the year. The last few years have rocked us all to the core and we are reminded that we have no control and that life can indeed turn on a dime for us personally and for the whole world. My resolution this time around is to do what I can to grow a little personally and artistically each day. I need to be in this moment because there's only this moment. I also need to get may nails done. I digress.
These are the things that enter my mind. I have no magic wand. The ball drops and does not emit magical powers over all of us. And because of time zones, the New Year trickles in and not all at once. That's life isn't it? It trickles in and not all at once. Each moment passes until the day is done and we are safe in our beds by the day's end.
The nice thing is that we are all a work in progress. I try to remind myself of that so it takes the pressure off. Believe it or not, that worked for me in 2022. After a battle with long covid that I feel I have overcome for the time being, I vowed to do as much as I could when the ball dropped this time last year. I didn't set unrealistic expectations and it worked. Here is a list of things I accomplished, planned and unplanned:
1. I filmed eight episodes of my very own web series, five are up on you tube, and three are in edit mode. My goal was to film 10. I got 80% there. That's pretty good.
2. I have been taking voice lessons for the last year and a half. I vowed to practice more. I practiced 50% more than I did when I started. The goal was to make my lungs better from having covid. I achieved that.
3. I have been reading more.
4. I managed to walk most every day and do yoga almost every day. My goal was every day and I hit it 70% of the time.
5. I wanted to grow my salon business. I had a few setbacks but it did grow and I almost made my goal for how much I wanted the salon to gross in revenue. I'm not there but I got close enough that I feel good about it.
So, what are my goals this year? Keep doing what I'm doing and continue to create new habits. I'm following some of the things I learned from listening/reading Atomic Habits. Is it really reading if it's an audio book? The experts will have to weigh in at some point but I did take in valuable information. One of the key components in that book is to add a small habit to something that you already do. Example: I practice my scales and warm ups in the morning while I am getting ready for work. Then I sing a couple of songs. This morning, the singing brought me joy. The idea is that these things become habits because you incorporate it into your daily routine.
Speaking of routine. I have not chastised myself if I pick my phone up and look at it when I wake. However, I put it right back down. I stretch, drink water, and get my morning clothes on. I wake up in the same time frame. I have stopped pressing myself to wake up at exactly 5:30 or whatever those other blog posts say. Because it's my goal to just get up as early as my body wants, I am waking up around the right time every day. I have a task list that I must do and the tasks are done most of the time.
It's helpful to give yourself grace and revel in what you are accomplishing already. For example, I have written every morning and I have this second post of 2023. I'm not concerned with whether or not they get read. I am more concerned about the journey for a change. Of course I want an outcome but I finally get the whole, "It's about the journey, not the destination," jargon. I intend to finish projects and put them into the world but I have resolved that it's more important to enjoy each triumph as they come my way. As the girl I saw on TikTok say, "Tell yourself how things are already going your way. Train your brain." Or something like that. Happy New Year.
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