New Year's Resolutions That You Can Actually Stick To!

I know you must be thinking... Why on Earth are you writing a blog post in February about a New Year's Resolution, that was a month ago! Well, studies show that over half of resolutions (particularly those involving a lifestyle change) get abandoned in the first month! So by February, you're back to where you ended last year, and your New Year's Resolution is... Well, forgotten about! If this sounds like you, don't fear, Emily's World is here! I will be providing you with a nice list of New Year's Resolutions, some I have tried, some I haven't, that are recommended by experts to give you the best shot of sticking to your guns the whole year through!


★ Give Yourself A Reading Challenge

This is a resolution I began last year, and did see through! My goal was to read 10 books, and I managed to read 13! I found this resolution so helpful that I have also begun another reading challenge this year and am already on my second book. Reading is a great way of relaxing, de-stressing before you sleep, or to pass the time when waiting for a bus or the dentist to name but a few. Apps like 'Goodreads' are great at tracking your progress page-by-page and will manage your reading challenge for you, members of the Goodreads community can recommend you books, see your progress and respond to your reviews if you write them. I love reading, and I appreciate that not everybody does, it can also be difficult to find the time to sit down to read if you lead a busy life, so if you aren't keen on this resolution and would struggle to finish just one book, don't panic - there's something in this list for everyone!

Resolutions You Can Stick With

★ Take Care Of Yourself

Any aspect of your physical, mental or emotional wellbeing that you believe needs fine-tuning is a perfect opportunity to create a good New Year's Resolution that you can stick to. Some people aim to get an extra hour of sleep every night to ready them for the morning, while others dedicate one meal a day to be healthy or home-made rather than relying on microwave meals and takeaways. A few examples of other resolutions that may apply to you are as follows:

★ Go to the dentist when you're supposed to - don't avoid it!

★ Do an hour of exercise a day, this can even be walking around the house.

★ Have a day each week where you don't rely on transport to get you from A to B, cycle or walk instead.


★ Decorate Your Home

This is always a topic that gets mentioned, promised and then never happens. Our homes need some tender loving care too! Be actively engaged in what you intend to decorate, doing the whole house could be unrealistic if you have a busy life and therefore you're more likely to give up on the idea, but dedicating your time to decorating one room may be the way to go, plus doing something in which you can notice you have completed is great for your productivity, you'll feel proud of yourself for finally decorating after years of putting it off! Your house will thank you for it. Some people go as far as dedicating a few months for each room so by the end of the year they've got a brand-spanking new home to admire! However active your lives are, work around your schedule, but don't put it off completely if you choose this as your New Year's Resolution!


★ Learn A New Language

Not everyone's cup of tea, but if you fancy learning a little something new, particularly if you enjoy learning, challenge yourself to learn a new language! Not only is this great for your brain (and to lower the language barriers between people online), but it can encourage you to complete another very common New Year's Resolution: to travel to somewhere new! One of the biggest reasons people are reluctant to travel to a new place abroad is the language barrier, how can you be expected to communicate effectively if you can't understand them, even more so if you need medical care and are unable to speak the language. This massive travel-block can be overcome just by picking up a few helpful phrases. We don't expect you to know the Arabic dictionary through and through, but it may be helpful to know key words and phrases if you intend to visit Egypt, for example. Again, this requires a lot of dedication and may be hard to muster if you lack time, but thankfully with the development of language-learning software and apps, it makes learning languages more fun and accessible than ever!


★ Make Realistic Body Goals

Best New Year's Resolutions

Losing or gaining weight is possibly one of the most common New Year's Resolutions people make each year. But did you also know it's one of the most common that fail too? This is hugely down to the fact that telling yourself to "lose six pounds by the end of the year", well, that seems easy and more like a "I'll do it tomorrow" kind of issue. The best way to tackle body goals in my opinion is month by month. Last year, my end goal was to gain six pounds and I tracked this bi-monthly, if I put on two pounds each month, I knew I was on the right path. Not only are you giving yourself time to reach your goal, but actively tracking your progress sets you up to succeed, if you are falling behind you know how to fix it, and if you are on goal, you can give yourself a well-earned pat on the back and continue what you are doing. Being realistic is important, nobody can lose six pounds in a week, and making strict goals is only negative for your physical and mental health. Remember to seek guidance from a professional before deciding your end goal, as sometimes we can be a little too tough on ourselves!


★ Try Budgeting

Christmas is an expensive time, there's no doubt about that. Budgeting is important for the first few months of the year for this exact reason. Thankfully there's plenty of sales on around this time of year, but they only last so long! Work out your income and outgoings, bills, average spend on food and drink and work from there. Don't treat yourself too much. Work out amongst your household how much money is left over and what you can treat yourself on. If you want a holiday in the summer, or are saving to buy a new top-notch television, this is a great way to do so. Put away an amount you can afford for each month of the year and leave it there, no withdrawing it! Once you have enough, you can spend it on your intended treat and thank your past self for participating in the saving process. I aim to budget every month and do so with little issues, it was something I once struggled with, but as I do so repeatedly, it's become more of a habit to only buy what I need, and avoid expensive brands to opt for just-as-effective ones instead. It is well worth the time and patience in the long run!


★ Focus On Mindfulness

Life is hard, nobody ever breezed through and said it was easy. Which is why more than ever we are utterly stressed in our current lives. With this becoming an ever-rising issue, there are plenty of ways of managing this, and one way is through mindfulness. Apps dedicated to relaxing sounds to help you sleep, yoga exercises, healthy thinking habits are all contributing to mindfulness. Use the support of those around you to support you on your journey, it may be worthwhile for them to have the same New Year's Resolution too! Make 2020 the year of taking care of you. You can take it further by interpreting dreams, writing a mood diary and attempting to understand your subconscious being to resolve some deeper-rooted thoughts you may just push to one side because other commitments come first. Even if it isn't possible to be mindful all the time, when you get a free moment, just sit and think or use one of the ideas I mentioned above. You will be surprised how it will impact your mental health.

Did you find this post helpful? What New Year's Resolutions did you find worked well for you?