Everyone attempts to give you advice on how to live healthier, look better, and earn more money in the next 365 days at the start of the new year. It's okay if you get lost in all the advice and opinions. Sometimes you lose sight of what you genuinely want to accomplish in the coming year. That's when it's time to think of alternatives to New Year's resolutions.
To assist you, we've created this post about what you should delete from your New Year's resolution list rather than adding to it in order to make your daily life more harmonious and pleasant.
Check these off your New Year's to-do list—your body, mind, and spirit will be grateful.
1. Stop Buying Meaningless Gifts
We've all felt the sense of obligation that comes with having to buy a present for an occasion or celebration that is tomorrow but having no idea what to offer.
Take these gift-buying recommendations to heart for all future holidays, including birthdays, weddings, and graduations, as alternatives to New Year's resolutions:
STOP FOCUSING ON THE MATERIAL OBJECTS
Instead of focusing on what tangible object to give, consider the emotion you want to elicit in the gift receiver, and then choose a symbolic gift to reinforce or reflect that emotion. For example, you can give the gift of coziness by offering a "comfort set" with warm socks, tea, candles, and so on. Alternatively, provide inspiration by providing a lovely planner or notebook.
PLAN GIFTS IN ADVANCE
We understand that this is easier said than done, but if you try to plan which things you'll need in the coming months (try making a list three or four times a year), ideas will more likely come to mind, and you'll avoid last-minute purchasing. You'll also be able to keep an eye on sales to acquire the greatest deals.
SUGGEST A BETTER WAY
If you're sick of exchanging gifts for birthdays and holidays, try something new. For example, draw names among family members and agree that each person will only buy a gift for the person whose name they were drawn.
Alternatively, you can agree not to share gifts among adults and solely give gifts to family members' children. Alternatively, instead of purchasing you a gift, encourage your friends to give to charity. These are all excellent alternatives to New Year's resolutions involving gift-giving.
GO FOR COMMON EXPERIENCES INSTEAD OF EXCHANGING GIFTS
Instead of spending money on gifts, you can agree (with your partner or extended family) to go on a joint trip, dinner, or other activity.
You may have to be the one to violate the rules that have been accepted in the family for years, but if you suspect that you aren't the only one in the group who is sick of gift-hunting, you will almost certainly find support for your recommendations.
2. Starting a New Diet or Fitness Plan
It's no secret that TV shows, headlines, and advertisements (not to mention our healthy, diet-obsessed buddies) make us feel like we need to appear better, leaner, and younger than we are. Going on another diet or starting a fitness plan with the incorrect motivation, on the other hand, rarely yields remarkable results in the near term.
If you're like most people, you've undoubtedly signed up for a yearly gym membership just to cancel it one month later.
How can you strike a balance between a decent resolution for a healthier life and committing to short-term goals? Check out these alternatives to New Year's diet and fitness resolutions.
SET A HEALTHIER PATTERN
Do meat-free Mondays, for example, or limit your meat consumption to three days per week (less saturated fat for you and healthier for the environment).
Alternatively, choose to consume exclusively nutritious food at least three days a week or only on weekdays (e.g., include vegetables, fruits, whole grains, dairy products, and protein in your meals). This way, you'll have a healthy diet while still being able to indulge in a snack on weekends or during parties.
GET A FITNESS WATCH
Fitbit and MiBand fitness watches are small additions that record your steps and calories burned and act as a terrific motivator to move—or to take the stairs instead of the elevator.
FIND A PHYSICAL ACTIVITY YOU ENJOY
Even if you are not a big sports fan, you can probably find an activity that you enjoy. Consider your options, which could range from Nordic walking to pilates or even home exercise.
TRY INTERMITTENT FASTING
This is an alternating fasting and eating cycle. Stop eating at 8 p.m., for example, and resume eating no sooner than 12 hours later. This technique has been shown to have several health benefits in addition to weight loss, making it one of the greatest alternatives to dieting-related New Year's resolutions.
3. Squeezing as Much as Possible Into a Daily To-Do List
In today's hectic environment, stress-free day planning is an art form in and of itself. It's normal to want to be a good parent, a hard worker, a contributing member of the community, and probably a few other things.
However, playing all of these roles needs a lot of work and rigorous organization. How can you prevent becoming overwhelmed by all of your appointments and responsibilities? Most importantly, how do you find time to rest and recharge your batteries?
Instead of attempting to accomplish as much as possible, begin with these alternatives to New Year's resolutions relating to your daily planning.
LEAVE BIGGER INTERVALS BETWEEN MEETINGS
If you book too many appointments or duties in a day, you will most likely be late at some point and stressed as a result. People are late for a variety of reasons, but poor planning is a significant one.
PLAN TIME TO RELAX
You should strive to schedule your rest time, as strange as it may sound. For example, if you only have one free evening this week and a friend requests a meeting, you are allowed to decline. Don't feel obligated to explain why you're refusing.
TRY TO BE A LITTLE PESSIMISTIC
We're frequently overbooked or running late for errands because we're overly optimistic about traffic, how long it takes to do things, and so on. Instead, adopt the opposite strategy: think you'll be delayed by traffic or the meeting will last longer.
WAKE UP EARLIER
Even waking up 30 minutes earlier can offer you a much-needed head start on your day's errands. But keep in mind that getting adequate sleep every night, even if it means going to bed earlier, is essential.
PLAN YOUR DAY THE DAY BEFORE
Packing a lunch and laying out an outfit before bed will likely make your day much more planned, so keep this in mind while considering alternatives to New Year's plans.
DESIGNATE A TIME FOR CHECKING EMAILS
If you start checking your messages in between meetings, you risk being lost in a sea of unanswered messages. Make a time for this exercise or perform it if you are running late for a meeting.
4. Stop Smoking or Drinking
If there is one thing we should get rid of in the New Year, it is the behaviors that take up our time and deliver momentary gratification but generate little long-term value. Worse, they may have a harmful impact on our health.
Everyone appears to want to quit smoking or drinking, and it's a fantastic goal to have if it's become an issue in your life. Other behaviors, though, are producing problems in many people's daily lives and require care as well.
Here are some common (and pointless) habits, along with suggestions about how to break them:
BINGE-WATCHING SERIES
Despite the fact that most online television platforms provide lists of "Best TV Shows to Binge Watch," becoming addicted to series is a significant time-waster.
You can deal with this addiction in a variety of ways. For example, as a reward, watch one episode per day (or a couple per week) only after you've completed an assignment or a house job. Alternatively, try replacing this habit with exercise or reading a book—it will be difficult at first, but it should stick after a few weeks.
You might also try to track how much time you spend watching TV or watching movies—seeing how much of your life you are wasting may motivate you to take action. These are all excellent alternatives to habit-related New Year's resolutions.
RUNNING ON COFFEE
Being a coffee addict is a fashionable addiction these days, but it's not as harmless as it may appear. Aside from addiction, drinking too much coffee (more than 500-600 mg of caffeine per day) can cause uneasiness, sleeplessness, an upset stomach, a fast heartbeat, and even muscular tremors.
Consider converting to tea or edible coffee as a more sustainable, healthful, and productivity-boosting alternative. Coffee Pixels, for example, are solid coffee bars that provide a more consistent energy boost throughout the day without the caffeine-induced abstinence and dehydration.
PROCRASTINATION
Fighting procrastination demands a lot of determination. If it's an issue in your everyday life or at business, try "eating the frog" first thing in the morning—complete your most difficult or time-consuming activities first, then move on to everything else.
Alternatively, utilize time-tracking software to keep track of how much time you spend on ineffective activities, websites, or apps. Once you've determined how much time you're wasting, attempt to limit your time on social media to, say, 20 minutes per day.
If nothing else works, try bribing yourself—promise yourself that when you finish your assignment, you will do something fun or nice.
Whatever habit you want to break, consider using habit-building tools to form a contract with yourself and reward yourself for reaching milestones.
5. Buying Less
We live in a consumerist age, with large manufacturers promising a comfortable living on the one hand, and mounting environmental problems as a direct result of our modern lifestyle on the other. The most popular solution is to consume less whenever and whenever possible. However, it may be preferable to try to buy wisely with better resolution options.
Also, if you frequently overbuy food, make a vow to buy only what fits in one shopping bag (that you carry with you). If you frequently forget to bring your shopping bag, invest in a 2-in-1 wallet with a built-in shopping bag for more eco-friendly shopping.
The Bottom Line
As the new year begins, we're all excited to see what experiences await us. But make a vow to yourself this year:
Instead of a never-ending list of duties and responsibilities, prioritize the most important ones and cross out the rest without feeling bad.
Because less is more, make this year count by making fewer but better New Year's resolutions.
