This post may contain affiliate links, which means I’ll receive a commission if you purchase through my links, at no extra cost to you. Please read full disclosure for more information.
With another new year approaching, you may wonder what resolutions you should consider to elevate your life game. Instead of randomly picking them out of a hat, customize and personalize each of these goals to achieve your best life every day.
1. Choose to Focus on Good News
The world can be a pretty hostile place, and it’s easy to slip into that negativity. Focus on positive news, and choose each day to find the glimmer of hope. When others rumormonger, share something encouraging instead and watch hope spread like wildfire.
2. Pick a Daily Act of Kindness
What can you do for someone else to make their life better today? Use this as your guiding principle to help the world become kinder. Tip your cab driver lavishly or help an elderly neighbor cross the road. Any act of kindness, no matter how small, makes a difference.
3. Journal to Find Your Ikigai
Have you found your ikigai? It’s your thrill-creating activity, reason for being or passion. Do you like to color, dance, take photos or run marathons? Whatever makes your heart beat a little faster is your ikigai. Journaling is a perfect way to find your passion, think about it and find ways to live it intentionally. Create an ikigai journal to discover your purpose and your joy.
4. Move Daily
When your body is stuck, your mind follows. Daily movement, whether you hit the gym or take a meditative walk through the local park during your lunch hour, helps your brain release endorphins, which make you feel happier and more energized. Track your exercise habits in your diary or journal.
5. Affirm Each Day
Each day is a gift — which is why it’s called the present. While this may sound like a cheesy sales line, it’s a fact. When you affirm each day, you value a gift denied to many. Use positive affirmations like “I am free and filled with potential today” or “Today is the day I make dreams come true” to help you value and cherish all 8,760 hours of the following year.
6. Reduce Single-Use Plastics
Single-use plastics are the bane of ocean life, and by reducing your reliance on disposables, you can help break the pollution chain. Plastic takes hundreds of years to decompose, and it often becomes microplastics, harming ecosystems. This year, use a reusable stainless steel mug or bottle instead of plastic bottles.
7. Do a 24-Hour Digital Detox
If you’re stuck behind a screen all day, you must do regular digital detoxes or periods without technology. Schedule 24-hour time-outs every month or quarter. This helps you reconnect with what matters and the real world. It’s like inbox zero for your mind.
8. Invest in Property
Whether you buy a house or a business space, sole ownership is an easy and viable option. It’s important to have a place to call your own. Real estate remains a valuable investment — if you buy wisely, it could return significant growth.
9. Set Aside Money Daily
While investing in property is great, you may need to build up funds for a down payment or deposit first. Saving money every day helps you do this. Find one expense you can do without daily. Your savings add up, whether you make coffee at home instead of buying or park further away in a free parking area instead of an undercover space. Every dollar saved is a dollar earned.
10. Learn a New Foreign Word Daily
The world grows smaller with each passing year, and countries are more like neighbors than separate entities, so it makes sense to broaden your language skills. You may have little desire to learn a foreign language, but picking up a few words is fun and mentally stimulating. Choose one you like and start learning with the help of Google Translate or an AI tool.
11. Learn to Say No so You Enjoy Saying Yes
Saying no is powerful. If you’ve been a people-pleaser all your life, this is the year to think about what you agree to and find your voice so you can say no. When you master saying no to things that don’t serve you, it will feel so good to say yes to the things that matter.
12. Watch a Monthly Documentary
Knowledge is power — learning something new becomes a fascinating pastime with documentaries. Find a docuseries you like or a YouTube channel with factual features and broaden your mind every month. If you find this a worthwhile activity, consider doing it weekly.
13. Develop a New Skill
New skills help you feel more capable and better prepared for life. Make a list of things you’d love to master this year. Some options include changing a tire, training your dog, baking a cake, playing chess, identifying local birds or touching your toes.
14. Switch to Eco-Friendly Detergents
Some detergents and cleaners contain harmful chemicals that may cause allergic reactions and affect your health. This year, swap out chemical cleaners for eco-friendly varieties. These are free from preservatives, colorants, fragrances and surfactants.
15. Add Plants to Your Home
This year is the time to green your life by adding indoor plants. Houseplants are fantastic for filtering the air and improving indoor air quality. They humidify the air to alleviate respiratory illnesses, produce oxygen, and boost physiological and cognitive health, improving the lives of those nearby.
16. Set and Achieve a Daily Goal
When you have a daily goal, no matter how small it seems, it feels fantastic when you achieve it. Setting a challenge or obstacle to overcome encourages you to find motivation and remain mentally nimble. Remember to celebrate your objectives as you reach them.
17. Change to Plant-Based Meals
Plant-based diets, or mainly eating plant-forward food, are closely linked to healthier living and a decreased risk of disease. Start with a weekly vegetarian meal and up your game to eventually cut most animal products from your diet. Flexitarians can choose what food they eat, with most meals including minimal meat or processed foods. You can have meat, but make it the best quality and only eat it occasionally.
18. Start a Gratitude Jar
Write something you’re thankful for every day or week and drop it in the gratitude jar. By the end of the year, you’ll have a collection of moments to remind you of all the good things that happened. It’s a simple and powerful way to focus on positivity and celebrate life’s small wins.
Inspire a Happy New Year
New Year’s happiness starts with you. Plan your year with good intentions and resolutions that inspire you to be more content, joyful, passionate and innovative. This is your time to shine.
Cora Gold
Contributor
Leave a Reply