It’s that time of the year when people make resolutions with the best of intentions for the year ahead. If you do this, good for you! If you can’t quite get to resolutions, though, there are other ways to reflect on the past and envision the future.
2020 has likely been among the most challenging you have experienced. Throughout the year, you’ve undoubtedly learned more about yourself than in other years. As such, you know more about what you’re willing to tolerate.
This exercise works well when you consider new and old habits. When you do it, think seriously about what you’re genuinely prepared to change. Don’t set yourself up for failure by taking on too much; consider one or two maximum in each of the three broad categories that follow:
+ What you want to keep doing
+ What you want to eliminate
+ What you want to add
Keep: You’ve functioned differently in 2020. You may have picked up some new practices or habits or even modifications of old habits that you’d like to continue doing. What are the habits that are keepers and why will it benefit you to keep doing them?
Eliminate: This is the discard pile. Think of eliminating things that you can really get rid of, not things that are beyond your control. You may have one or two habits that you don’t feel so good about, and this is the perfect time to think seriously about how to eradicate them from your life.
Add: Finally, what do you want to do that you haven’t been doing or want to do? This can be everything from setting better boundaries around work to becoming more intentional about working out.
As you can see, this process covers ways to improve what you do: it reinforces things you want to continue, it gives you permission to get rid of things that aren’t so great, and it gives you fresh ideas for new beginnings.
It has definitely been a taxing year, and realistically these challenges will continue into the new year. Use this opportunity to fine tune what works best for you and can support you as we continue this journey. Doing so will help move you through any difficult times ahead.
