I’m a firm believer that the new year is a great time to inventory your life and set new goals. I know, I know. Time is a made up construct and honestly, yes, if you have a dream, you really should start working towards it now. Don’t wait for the new year, next month, Monday, or tomorrow. Start today.
That being said, I still believe the new year is ideal for reflecting and realigning myself. I make a big thing out of it. I sit down in a quiet place with my journal and some music and dig deep about how the past year went and what I’d like to accomplish for the next year. For my businesses, this is a much easier exercise as I look at revenue and page views. It’s very data and product driven. But with my personal life, I like to dig much deeper into my behaviors and habits.
Here are my 7 intentions for the new year.
- Engage more actively and authentically on social media. We’re not meant to socialize 24/7. That’s a reality. So instead of mindlessly scrolling through social media multiple times a day, I’ve started restricting myself only to times when I want to engage with other people. I’ve already seen a shift in how I engage – more comments, more conversations – and I really want to carry this forward.
- Use my genuine voice. If you follow this blog, my professional blog, and all three of my Instagram accounts (@lawrencemadeco, @jenlawrenceadmin, @LeggsFit), you may notice that I communicate differently on each platform. While some adaptation is necessary, it’s starting to feel phony. So this year, I’m continuing to work on my true voice and bringing that through in all channels.
- Reach out to friends and family when I think of them instead of putting it off. This is big for me. A childhood friend passed away in November and the first thing I thought was, “I should have reached out to her more.” I thought of her often but allowed my busyness or fear of it being “weird” to random think of people get in the way of me reaching out. How sad is that? It’s so important to appreciate people while they are here and sometimes that’s as simple as sending a quick text. “I was thinking of you today and hope you’re doing well.”
- Replace the phrase “We should get together” with “Let’s get together. Here’s when I’m available.” I’ve already kicked this one into high gear and it feels so damn good! I really do want to see my friends but we let our schedules get in the way. You know what, these people are important enough to make a priority. Even if my schedule can be unpredictable, they belong at the top of the list!
- Utilize “Do Not Disturb” on my phone more often. For the past few years, I’ve used the “Do Not Disturb” function on my iPhone at night, so I don’t get awaken with unnecessary notifications. (I do love that I can select important people though so I don’t miss the really important stuff.) However, there are other times I need that peace – while spending time with my husband and son, while working out, while working! It’s a simple click of a button and I’m suddenly freed from any annoying buzzing.
- Express gratitude instead of just being grateful. It’s super easy to say “I’m grateful for…” But it’s an entirely different thing to say thank you more often, send thank you notes, or send small gifts of appreciation. This year, I’ve added a gratitude line to my budget so I really have no excuse.
- Rest. During my pregnancy, I truly learned what it meant to rest. The to-do list will wait. The dishes and laundry will wait. Somedays I just need to rest. And that’s okay.
Do any of these resonate with you? What’s on your list?
Here’s to an amazing year!
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