Ahh the week between Christmas and the beginning of the New Year- The time where many of us lose track of the day of the week and the last time we ate a vegetable. (Hey! Carbs are the body’s most frequent energy source, right??) We often enjoy the first few days of wearing the same pair of sweatpants and binge watching our favorite comfort television shows but later feel sluggish and wonder where the time has gone. We have the best of intentions, but somewhere along the line we go astray. Not this year!
By all means please, please, please enjoy some rest, especially after another grueling year, but let’s find a healthy balance between planning ahead for our success and relaxation. We’ll start off easy.
What are some things on your “to do list” that never seem to be high priority enough to be near the top? Go ahead and grab a pen and paper to physically write out a few items or open a new list on your phone. You’ve already got it right in your hand!
While you’re writing down your list, I’ll explain a neat little trick my husband taught me for prioritizing. Each task you want to accomplish can fit into one of four categories: urgent and important, urgent but not important, important but not urgent, and not urgent or important.
For me, dusting and washing my windows usually fall into that last category and thus rarely get done. I always think it would be a good idea to do but don’t actually do it until the dust bunnies have built homes and are living quite nicely. (Remember, this is a judgement free zone!)
Over the next few days, make a commitment to knock a couple of those previously not urgent or important tasks off your list by setting a SMART goal (discussed in last year’s December blog post here: https://www.zenlightenmentwellness.com/post/5-simple-steps-to-set-and-actually-reach-your-new-year-s-resolutions). You will be significantly more likely to be successful in completing these tasks if you do so! You can even reward yourself with a few more episodes of that favorite show after you’re done!
I feel like it would be remiss of me to discuss the “lost week” between Christmas and the New Year and then leave out the idea of New Year’s Resolutions. People seem to be setting them less and less year after year, partially due to not enjoying the feeling of forgetting it or not achieving it just a few weeks (or days…) after setting it, which is very understandable!
So, we have two choices. Either refer back to the SMART Goals blog post and set specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely resolutions. Or toss the resolutions idea out the window entirely.
In working to set my own, personal and professional, goals for the next 52 weeks, I was doing some research into how other people set and achieve theirs, and I came across an idea that I absolutely love.
Do you remember in middle school or high school when you first got into the new building and your teacher asked you to write a letter to yourself that you would then open at the end of 8th or 12th grade? It may have felt a little silly or juvenile when you were writing it, but when you opened it again at the end of your time in school, it was heartwarming and something that you cherished. We are going to do something similar with your goals for the year!
In the next few days, I encourage you to sit down and write a letter to yourself that you will hold onto and read on New Year’s Eve 2022. This letter can include the following:
- Big moments in 2021: The good, the bad, and the ugly- when, what, who, and how you felt about it all.
- How you are closing out 2021: What are you doing? Who are you with? How are you feeling about it?
- Predictions for 2022: What will your relationships with friends, family, and yourself look like? Where will you be professionally and/or financially?
- Any other thoughts, hopes, dreams, ideas that comes to your mind as you write.
This letter is something you can do privately on your own or together as a family; even get the kids involved and teach them how to set goals and express their feelings in a healthy manner young! Once your letter is complete, fold it up and place it in an envelope to be sealed for the entire year. Store it in a place where you will see it every once in a while, so as to not completely forget about it, possibly in a drawer, magnetized to the refrigerator, or another place of your choosing.
I am incredibly excited to try this out for myself and tell you all about it at the end of 2022! Please let me know your thoughts down below or over on our social media pages on Facebook and Instagram. We are so very close to reaching 500 likes on our Facebook page, so if you haven’t yet, please like and follow the page and encourage your friends to do the same! Happy Holidays and have an amazing New Year!
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