Well, almost. But, it is just a few short hours away. I think there are many people out there who use the new year to reflect on the past year and want to make changes. I am no exception this year. Last year, I didn't make any resolutions. When I do make resolutions, they don't tend to last for very long, and I end up feeling guilty, like I have let myself down. This year has been tough for me, for various reasons, and I have gained almost all the weight back I lost a couple of years ago (50 lbs.) and managed to spend most of the money I had put aside. Granted, my trip to Scotland was a no holds barred extravaganza, but I still had a good chunk. I frittered most of the rest away. There are other contributing factors as well, and I need to pull myself together.
As a result, I am in the process of setting new intentions for the coming year. One thing I did was choose a word of the year. It's a word that you plan to use to funnel decisions through in order to keep you focused on your goals. My word this year is intentional. I spent a while thinking about different words, and none of the others reflected what I wanted. I think this word is perfect for me because I want to funnel my eating and financial decisions through this lens of intention.
Another decision I have made to keep me focused is to use this new planner I found a few weeks ago. It is by a company called Cultivate What Matters. And here is the link. Goal Planner. It is not your regular planner daily or weekly planner, it goes really in depth to help you figure out what you really want for yourself. It took me about 4 hours over a few days to figure everything out. I now have a plan that I believe is manageable for me. I intend to look at this planner every day to help me set my mindset. It is going to stay in my studio, though, because I don't want to hurt myself carrying it! It is beautiful, and the covers are hard covered with a sturdy ring binding. It might be a bit bulky for my school bag.
So, in order to have something I can carry with me, I also use a daily planner that will fit in my purse and is a bit lighter. I have been using this for a few days and I am enjoying it. It is called Passion Planner Daily Right now if you sign up for their emails, you will receive a 3 month printable PDF to try before you buy.
While surfing around on YouTube the other day, I found a video that resonated with me. It was about why goals don't work, and it was a very thought provoking video. It talked about how when we set resolutions, we often think of the negative, of what we have to give up. The author of the video Bobbie Koppe described a method she uses, and has generously shared her worksheets to help us reframe our thinking. She advocates changing your mindset to thinking about what the end result will be in a positive way. I will be diving into these in the next couple of days. My mindset is that not everything happens in a day, and I am allowing myself to take this process slowly.
So that's it for today. More on my intentional goals next time.
