Wishing you a joyful New Year! In this blog post, I’ll present you with 10 resolutions grounded in evidence that can significantly enhance your mental well-being and are more likely to become lasting habits. Let’s explore ways to make positive changes that stick throughout the year.
1. Move More, Sustainably:
Incorporate a bit more movement into your daily routine, focusing on small, achievable goals that can gradually increase over time. For instance, consider getting off the bus one stop earlier during your commute or opting for a slightly longer route to the grocery store. Additionally, seek social support—perhaps start a new exercise hobby with a friend or find an accountability partner at work to make regular movement more enjoyable and sustainable.
2. Eat the Rainbow for Healthy Eating:
Shift your focus from what you should eat less of to what you can add more often. Avoid the trap of deprivation by incorporating a variety of colourful fruits and vegetables into your meals. For example, aim to fill half of your dinner plate with these nutritious options, displacing less healthy choices. Another strategy is to eat more mindfully, savouring your food and avoiding distractions during meals, which can help you notice fullness cues earlier and reduce the likelihood of overeating. Make these adjustments to your eating habits for a more enjoyable and sustainable approach to a healthier lifestyle.
3. Kick that Pesky Habit for Good:
It’s time to tackle those habits you want to bid farewell to once and for all. Let’s delve into three fundamental strategies for “unlearning” bad habits:
- Replacement Strategy: Swap the unwanted habit for a better alternative. Identify the positive aspects of the habit that make it challenging to quit and find healthier substitutes. For instance, if you aim to quit smoking, consider maintaining the benefits like regular breaks and socializing by setting reminders to take breaks or having a snack on hand to keep your hands occupied.
- Seek Professional Help: Recognize that breaking a bad habit can be challenging, and getting professional assistance, such as accountability partners or a therapist, may be the key to success. Investing time and resources can significantly increase your chances of overcoming the habit.
4. Cultivate Self-Compassion:
Life becomes unnecessarily tough when the person you spend the most time with—yourself—is also the harshest critic. Instead of being overly critical, adopt a more self-compassionate approach. Treat yourself with the same kindness and understanding you would offer a friend facing challenges. Take note of your self-talk and aim to replace harsh words with the supportive language you would use with a friend. And before you bring it up: Embracing self-compassion won’t make you lazy or a bad person; it enhances your well-being and makes life more pleasant.
5. Foster More Joyful Moments:
While spontaneous joy may feel scarce in adulthood, intentionally creating more happy moments can make them more likely over time. Try these two tips:
- Practice Gratitude: Start a gratitude routine by naming three things (big or small) you’re grateful for each day. This simple practice shifts your focus and heightens awareness of the positive aspects of your life.
- Make Time for Joy: Amidst adult responsibilities, allocate regular time for activities that bring you joy. Whether it’s a hobby or a long-desired activity, set aside dedicated time to make it happen. This not only brings immediate happiness but also fosters a sense of accomplishment and motivation for other tasks.
6. Prioritise Quality Time with Loved Ones:
As life gets busier, maintaining connections with friends becomes more challenging. Here are some strategies to spend more meaningful time with loved ones:
- Establish Rituals: Create regular check-ins or meet-ups with friends, whether it’s a weekly phone call or a bi-weekly coffee catch-up. Prioritize sticking to these scheduled appointments, and if adjustments are needed, propose an alternative time.
- Manage Expectations: Recognize that different friendships may require varying levels of effort. Adjust your expectations based on the nature of each friendship and be willing to invest time even if the returns are not always equal. This mindful approach can lead to more fulfilling and happier relationships.
7. Infuse Excitement into Your Week:
Combat the post-festivity blues and inject energy into your daily routine by intentionally planning special moments each week. Beat the January slump with these strategies:
- Set Weekly Intentions: Establish the goal of having at least one activity to look forward to every week. It could be a coffee catch-up with a friend or any activity that brings joy and feels special to you. Consider adding season-specific elements, focusing on cosy indoor activities during colder weather.
- Create a Self-Care Calendar: Develop a structured self-care calendar with activities that bring relaxation and joy. By scheduling these activities, you increase the likelihood of them actually happening, allowing you to experience the positive effects.
8. Embrace Nature Regardless of Weather:
Aligning plans with the seasons is important, but regularly spending time in nature is recommended regardless of the weather. Experience the numerous positive effects of connecting with nature with these ideas:
- Choose Cosy Outdoor Destinations: Opt for comfortable outdoor locations like a cosy coffee shop or a library for a walk.
- Gear Up for the Weather: Equip yourself with outdoor gear to stay warm and dry. Consider bringing a small tent or tarp for a cosy experience while enjoying hot chocolate from a thermos.
- Turn Cold Into a Challenge: Challenge yourself by embracing the cold—go for a swim and relish the happiness hormones afterward.
- Set Nature Exploration Goals: Have a purpose for your outdoor excursions, whether it’s observing animals, collecting pretty stones, or enjoying stargazing on a cloudless night. Plan accordingly with suitable gear to enhance your experience.
9. Grow as a person – identify and tackle
Continuous learning is something we should all strive for, but it is one goal that is often lost out of sight over time. Here are some tips on how to start and stick with it:
Firstly, set realistic goals that align with your values. Now (or really any time) is a good opportunity to focus more on growth. What is it that you’d like to get better at or more into? Here are some ideas for areas: Culture, language, cooking, a new hobby, travel, reading more books, professional goals etc.
If you for example noticed that you’d like to have more moments with culture and art, a goal could be to visit a museum or other exhibition once per month.
Secondly, try to also step a bit out of your comfort zone once in a while. Growth only happens at the edges of what we know and feel comfortable in. So maybe there is an area in your life, where a little bit more discomfort could be a good thing.
10. Reflect regularly to keep it all up
The one activity that will make it way more likely to notice and stick with goals is regular reflection. Taking time to think about your goals and overall life satisfaction will help you to identify points of action.
Here are a few tips on how to start a regular reflection routine:
- Start with a simple journaling practice.
Journaling can mean writing long pages of text, but it can also be a few bullet points in a notebook, that doesn’t have to take more than a few minutes at a time. I personally try to reflect about my goals and things I like once per week. My ritual doesn’t take longer than 15 minutes and I base my structure on the on suggested by the inventor of the “bullet journal method” Ryder Caroll. - If a weekly ritual isn’t realistic for you, try a monthly check in instead. I often suggest these two questions to help guide the check-in:
What is going well this month?
What would I like to change?
You can find a multitude of more ideas in this blog post about journaling.
Final words: Don’t set yourself up for certain failure by trying to do it all! If you chose to focus on certain goals this year, pick only a few, but make them count. Nothing eats up motivation as quickly as feeling overwhelmed. So focus on one or two that speak to you and stick with them for several months, before you add any additional goals.
TL:DR:
1. Move more – but make it sustainable
- Smart Moves: Incorporate tiny bursts of movement into your day for long-term commitment. Think about walking a bit extra or taking a scenic route to the store.
- Win Small: Set achievable goals, gradually increasing activity. Having a friend join or becoming an exercise buddy at work adds the needed social push.
2. Eat the rainbow and maybe lose the odd kilo
- Colorful Choices: Shift focus from deprivation to addition. Fill half your plate with veggies and fruits, crowding out less healthy options.
- Mindful Eating: Savor your meals away from distractions, aiding in recognizing fullness cues and avoiding overeating.
3. Quit “enter that pesky habit here” but this time for good
- Replacement Strategy: Swap unwanted habits with healthier alternatives, retaining the benefits. Set reminders and have support to ease the transition.
- Get (Professional) Help: Acknowledge the difficulty and seek professional assistance or an accountability partner for increased success.
4. Be kinder to yourself
- Self-Compassion: Treat yourself as you would a friend facing challenges. Alter negative self-talk, fostering a kinder and more supportive inner dialogue.
5. Have more happy moments
- Gratitude Practice: Start a daily gratitude journal to shift focus towards positive aspects in life.
- Time for Joy: Schedule regular moments for activities that bring joy, creating a sense of accomplishment and motivation.
6. Spend more time with loved ones
- Quality Over Quantity: Prioritize meaningful interactions over frequency. Establish regular rituals to keep connections strong.
- Adjust Expectations: Recognize and adjust expectations for different friendships, ensuring a happier overall experience.
7. Get more excited about each week – plan special moments
- Weekly Intentions: Set weekly goals for enjoyable activities, combating monotony.
- Self-Care Calendar: Create a calendar for relaxing and joyful activities, increasing the likelihood of follow-through.
8. Connect with nature more often (despite the weather)
- Cosy Nature Time: Enjoy nature even in unfavorable weather by choosing cosy locations or bringing appropriate gear.
- Challenge the Cold: Embrace the cold with invigorating activities like a winter swim or stargazing.
9. Grow as a person – identify and tackle
- Continuous Learning: Align personal growth with realistic goals that resonate with your values.
- Step Out of Comfort Zone: Embrace discomfort as a catalyst for growth, exploring areas beyond your usual boundaries.
10. Reflect regularly to keep it all up
- Simple Journaling: Develop a weekly or monthly reflection routine, capturing goals and overall life satisfaction.
Check-In Questions: Ask yourself what’s going well and what you’d like to change, guiding your reflection process.
Photo by Ian Schneider on Unsplash
Margaretha Madoures 