It’s a New Year—Seize the Moment!

It’s a new year, the traditional time to set goals and make resolutions. But how many of us actually keep our resolutions and achieve our goals?

The experts say the best way to honor resolutions and accomplish goals is to be realistic and specific, prioritize, set deadlines, find an accountability partner, write things down, track progress, etc.

Those are all good ideas. However, accomplishing goals in the midst of all the distractions life brings can still be a challenge. In fact, for a lot of us this can end up being a frustrating struggle that leads to disappointment and stress.

The thing is, you don’t need to take a drill-sergeant approach to meeting your objectives. Go easy on yourself. Just do the best you can to achieve what you want to do.

Setting and reaching goals for the year is fine. But sometimes just spontaneously picking something to do that can make life more interesting or positive can also be meaningful—as well as fun.

I have this book that I mentioned in the previous post, “Now is the Time: 170 Ways to Seize the Moment,” by Patrick Lindsay, which is full of ideas of things to do on the spur of the moment.

Some of the ideas are more vague and general. Others are more specific. Here are a few examples:

• Watch the sun rise. There’s something remarkable about seeing the first signs of light in the morning to break the darkness. Viewing sunsets can be awesome too. I never get tired of viewing these marvels.

• Tame your inbox. Stop allowing email to dominate your life. It interrupts your concentration and puts you in a state of constant anticipation. I have a particular aversion to spam, so I find the less I look at the inbox, the better.

• Think of others. We’re often focused on ourselves and our own needs. But real growth and priceless enjoyment can come from helping others, the book notes.

• Confront your fears. What are you scared of? Many of our fears are actually outdated or based on misunderstandings, according to the book. Maybe it’s time to challenge and break free of them.

• See the funny side. Life can present serious challenges. Try to look for the humorous side of things. Laughter is a blessing, especially when things look dark.

• Start a journal. Recording your thoughts, feelings, and experiences can help reduce stress, boost health and well-being, process your emotions, and provide other benefits.

• Volunteer your time. Volunteering provides help and guidance to recipients and lots of satisfaction to givers. Think about it. You have much to offer.

• Nurture your creativity. We all have certain skills and talents to create things, and it would be a shame if we didn’t take advantage of them. I like to paint in my spare time. I find I’m most likely to enjoy the process when I’m painting a picture for someone in particular.

• Look for hidden opportunities. Sometimes even setbacks can present new opportunities for us, helping to turn a negative experience into a positive one. 

• Give back. Many of us have so much to be grateful for, and we can give back in so many ways.

I think setting New Years goals and resolutions is a good idea, even if you end up failing to meet your original objectives. You can also aim to achieve things any day, any time.

These can be small accomplishments. For example, while I was recuperating from surgery last year I made it a goal to make my bed in the morning. Ordinarily, I’d do this without giving it much thought or merit. But when I wasn’t feeling that great, it was a much bigger deal.

Accomplishing things we set out to do—no matter how small and simple—can make us feel good. It brings a bit of positivity into our lives.

Here’s wishing you a new year filled with accomplishments, and peace.

“If a goal is worth having, it’s worth blocking out the time in your day-to-day life necessary to achieve it.”—Jill Koenig

If you haven’t subscribed, you’re missing out on post updates! To sign up, type your email in the box below then click on the green subscribe button. When you receive a confirmation message from WordPress, click on the “confirm now” button to complete the process.