2018- You Got This!

As the year draws to a close, there are a few inevitable questions on people’s lips.

“What are you doing New Years Eve?”

“What on earth do you buy as a Chrissy gift for the dad/sister/bestie who has everything?”

“Do you have any new years resolutions?”

Well, the first one probably involves overpriced drinks, too many humans you don’t actually know and fireworks and the second one can usually be solved with the wonder that is online shopping.

As for the third… well, let’s get the bad news out of the way first. Apparently, only 8% of all New Year’s resolutions that are made are actually kept. EIGHT PERCENT! Prove those stats wrong and read on for our hot tips for getting what you want out of 2018.

Prioritise

Sometimes it might feel like you want to overhaul EVERY part of your life. You end up making about 27 different resolutions, only to feel really overwhelmed by the second week of January and give up on all of them. Think to yourself “what changes will make the biggest impact for me and what I want in my life right now?” and then pick just a couple of things to focus on based on your answer.

Plan

Most of us when going on a holiday don’t just throw a hodgepodge of random stuff into a car, take off on the morning of and head out with no idea of where we are going or what we are going to do. You decide where you want to go, look at the best options to make it happen, and organise accordingly. Same goes for goals in your personal life. It sounds a little dull, but putting in those hard yards first (ie. before 2018 ticks over) means you can go into a bit of “autopilot” mode in the new year. Once you’ve done your research (looking at gyms, writing a budget, searching job websites- whatever it might be) don’t forget to actually schedule time for it once the new year hits. It’s one thing to say “I’m going to go for a run every day!” but you need to get more specific- what time, where, how long, how will you get there etc. Put it in your diary and hold yourself to that appointment!

Play

Ugh, how many New Year’s resolutions start with “I’m going to give up *insert bad habit here*” or “I really should start *insert activity that you clearly don’t want to do otherwise you’d already be doing it here*”? No wonder they fail! Who wants to get on board that party pooper train for a whole YEAR! A new year can be a magical time for fresh starts, so try to reframe what it is you’re doing. If you are the adventurous type and are looking to improve your health, sign up to do some rock climbing. Need to kick the takeaway habit? Look into some fun cooking classes you can do with friends. Often resolutions are focusing on what you are going to give up, but try looking at what you will gain instead (eg instead of “quitting smoking” you are “saving a truck-load of money that can be spent on a well earned holiday”)

Patience

Most lifestyle changes take time, so don’t be discouraged if you slip up (by inhaling hot chips and a burger on New Year’s Day) or if things are taking too long to see results (still not finding spiritual nirvana after a month of meditating) Slow and steady wins the race, and a great way to keep yourself motivated is to track your progress so you can truly see how far you’ve come. “If you can measure it, you can change it” is a fundamental principle of psychology, and you might even start to uncover some patterns in your behaviour that prevent you from achieving your goals.

Good luck with any changes that you are looking to make in the new year- it can be an exciting time and a lovely fresh start for so many. And if exercising more, eating healthier and feeling happier are on your resolutions list…. well, you may just want to go book yourself a smoothie bike!