Thursday, December 29, 2011

New Year's Resolutions

Normally I am not the type to make amends for the new year. It's something about the whole "everyone does it" thing that I can't stand. People make their goals and never meet them. They go on fad diets for a couple weeks and then return back to their unhealthy lifestyles. They make these life altering resolutions and then come February, are back to their old ways. I just think it's stupid.
However, there are things that I would like to focus on in this upcoming year, and writing them down will help me feel less overwhelmed and keep myself accountable.

Here are a few things that I want to do next year:
1. Exercise more often. The whole month of December was a total flop. I got out of my workout routine and notice a difference in my energy levels and my overall feeling of strength. Come January, I will need to get back into my fitness routine. I want to get back into running a minimum of 12 miles/week. A 10-15 lb weight loss is my goal over the next few months and I know that with the right amount of motivation, I can achieve it.
2. Get more organized. Eric and I have been weeding through all the things that just sit around our little apartment. We don't use them, why should we own them? The good thing about living in a small space is that it is a bit easier to control the chaos. We have already made several trips to the Goodwill and plan on doing more over the next few weeks, too. I went through part of my wardrobe a few days ago and am forcing myself to get over holding onto clothes. If I haven't worn it in a year or I never felt that comfortable in it, it goes.
3. With the organization, comes the reward of new furniture. I want to save up money this year so that we can get a nice dresser (and maybe nightstands and bed set) that we will be able to fit our clothes comfortably in. I would also like to buy some wall shelves for all the rooms in our apartment because it would help with our lack of storage. I have this fear of making holes in our walls/putting heavy this up on the walls because of my lack of handyman expertise...I need to get over this!
4. Pay off credit card debt. I've had a small amount of credit card debt that I've been holding on to for the past couple years. It needs to go away. This year. It is a manageable amount that I need to focus on and get rid of, every month.
5. Keep working on building my bakery. This past year, I decided that I wanted to start a baking company. I told myself that I would take a year to develop recipes and come up with a business plan. It is something that I work on often but it gets hard to manage my time sometimes. I need to create a schedule for myself of things I would like to try making this year and a timeline for myself. I will also finish designing my business card which I started a couple months ago. I think I am doing a pretty good job of staying at everything I mentioned about starting the business, but I could be a little more persistent. If I create a schedule for myself, it will be a little less overwhelming and more organized.
6. Trust my gut. I think we all doubt ourselves sometimes. That makes others doubt us and makes us look less capable. As I get older, I get over my insecurities a little more, but there are days when the little voice inside says, "you can't do that". I want to work on being more confident this year. If I trust my gut about something I know to be true, I will be more confident and not feel like I need to be validated.
7. Blog more! I started this blog almost a year ago, and haven't been very faithful to it. It mostly comes with the fact that I just don't make time to do it. Next year I want to start another blog for the bakery, so whether it is in here or there, I will make time to write more in it. I think it is an excellent way for me to keep track of the year's progression.

Well, that felt good. Now comes the hard part, following through. Do you make New Year's Resolutions? What does 2012 have in store for you?