End of the Year Resolutions
We all know New Year’s Resolutions aren’t usually worth the breath that it takes us to utter them. I mean, let’s be honest: resolutions are not real goals! They are fairytales and proof that we wish for lots of things that we aren’t willing to work for.
Instead of resolutions, we ought to create personal traditions. Seriously, what would happen if you thought about how you wish you were living and figured out how to do that? What if this also meant figuring out how to stop doing stuff that you wish wasn’t a part of your life? Sometimes, the right cut is better than adding something.
All I’m saying is that in the middle of figuring out regular life, we must get in enough of the stuff that we really want so that we don’t feel like losers or work-a-holics. Don’t get me wrong, I know what it is to love my work, but I even find that my work is better when I have something going on besides work. I want my life to reflect that. I want it to be clear that I am somebody when I’m off the clock. I need to believe that for myself.
What I mean by personal traditions, I am really talking about the things that you have to make space for and set aside money and time for. I’m talking about the stuff you keep saying you want to do, but never actually do. What’s on your list? One of these, maybe…
✓ Annual personal spa retreat
✓ Rockstar birthday celebration that you need real money for
✓ Regularly attend some sort of event that gives you time to focus on yourself
✓ Taking enrichment classes somewhere
✓ An annual roadtrip with your best friend
✓ Setting aside time to build relationships with the little kids in your family
✓ Throwing yourself into a hobby
✓ Committing to a weekend getaway every couple of months because your life is stressful
✓ Figuring out how to get your hair done at the chi chi frou frou hair salon because you enjoy the experience and they respect your time
✓ Become a philanthropist or meaningful contributor to a cause that brings you joy
✓ Amassing a collection of some sort
I get it that you may not be able to do these things everyday; but that’s what makes them special! You have to plan. Likewise, if you’re not willing to give up anything for the thing you say you want, you don’t really want it. Check this out: I met a guy a few weeks back, and I just couldn’t see moving around my calendar to make room for a date. For real, I gave him a date three weeks into the future. Then, I had to be like, “Girl, just accept that you want a man, but that you don’t want this man! Ain’t nobody waiting damn near a month for coffee.” Another example: I was at an event the other day, and I didn’t buy anything because I’m dead set on something else that I want. Because I don’t live near my nieces and nephews, I’m building a jewelry collection so that I have meaningful gifts to give them…either when they hit a certain age or when I die. I’m planning to buy my first piece soon. I want that necklace way more than I wanted anything at that event although there were things there that I wanted. Overall, this necklace and what I want to do with it makes me feel more like the person I’ve always imagined myself to be. It’s like I get to walk in the warmth of my own sunshine. I get to move from hoping to actually having. So no, I’m not waiting until New Year’s to move toward the me of my dreams. Choose to do you now. Why wait? Find the space, time, & money.
