With the new year upon us many people will feel inspired and others pressured to go into 2020 with ambitious new year’s resolutions and goals. The new year can be a great reason to summon the motivation to follow through on goals that have been on the back burner, or to create new goals on which to focus your energy.
Only you know what is realistic. Renovating a home might be a realistic project for one person while dragging yourself out of bed on time might be a challenging goal to set for another person. Before selecting a resolution check in with yourself and what you are capable of right now. Be okay with whatever that is, even if it skipping the resolution this go around.
A resolution does not need to be a big project or a big change. Sometimes just recommitting to things you already have going on in your life is just as good a resolution as adding something new. Any size goal is truly okay. It does not have to be a big undertaking. If you do choose a big goal be sure to break it down into smaller manageable and attainable parts. Feel good about each step you accomplish and consider rewarding yourself along the way.
If you are going to create a resolution that involves adding something new into your routine consider the amount of time you have to give. Ask yourself how much time you can consistently devote to this new activity- how many days per week, how many minutes or hours per day. If you make your goals too large or time consuming it will be harder to sustain your effort and keep going over time.
Parents may want to consider a family resolution or something that you can do with your children. This may be quality time, a project, or any number of things. Committing to doing something together can help you make sure that you get dedicated family time.
It is also completely fine to make a resolution focused on yourself and not time with or doing things for others. Particularly for parents if you are taking good care of yourself you will be able to more calm and present when you are with your family. Making a resolution to devote time to self-care can be immensely helpful for yourself and your family as a whole. Your resolution can be something personal just for you that you do not share with others.
If you are a parent and you choose to work toward a resolution and share what it is with others this can be a great learning experience for your children. It can be a great way for your children to see how a role model goes about setting a goal, and then how they go about working toward it and attaining it. If you need to make adjustments you can share those with your children and they will learn about the process of adjusting their own goals in life… and that it is not only okay but often necessary to make changes along the way.
Whether you make a resolution or not make sure to make time for yourself and the things that are important to you in the year to come!
