Happy New Year! I am sure most people, like myself, embrace the New Year as a time to reflect on the past year and to establish new goals to make positive changes for the upcoming year. I have come to learn that “Recovery is a journey, not a destination”. As a person in Recovery, I am always seeking to lead a healthier life. This starts with establishing goals, creating a plan of action, and finding a community of like-minded people who can hold me accountable. What is your New Year’s Resolution? Did you make a Resolution last year? Did you stick to it? Here are some ideas and tools I have come across that can help you identify a Resolution and the ways in which you can bring it to fruition this year.
First, do you have a Resolution? What positive change would you like to see in your life? The following Parade article, 55 New Year’s Resolution Ideas, https://parade.com/969195/megangrant/new-years-resolutions-ideas/, lists some great Resolution ideas. For example, perhaps you want to read a book a month, go on a trip, feel healthier, and/or think more positively this year. The article lists 55 different ideas for you if you’re unsure of what changes you want to see in your life. Whatever the Resolution, we are more likely to move forward in our Recovery and a healthier lifestyle if we set specific goals to achieve.
So, how can we achieve these goals and ensure we stick to our New Year’s Resolution? It is important to identify a goal that is attainable and realistic. Also, it is important to have a plan set on how to achieve it. For example, if your Resolution is to go on a trip this year, develop a plan of where you would like to go, who will travel with you, how much it will cost, and how much you will need to set aside each month to pay for it. If your plan is to read a book a month, are you setting aside a certain time each day to read? Do you have a list of books you want to explore? Is there a local Book Club you can join? If your Resolution is to get healthier, how will you do so? Will you exercise daily, drink more water, and eat healthier meals? How often will you exercise, what specifically will you eat, and how much water will you drink each day? Perhaps you can attend weekly classes at a gym, get a workout buddy, and prep meals in advance to ensure you stick to your goals. If your Resolution is to think more positively, make it a goal to write down at least one thing you are grateful for each day and share your list at the end of the week with someone else who commits to doing this too.
Whatever Resolution you decide is best for you, the following New York Times Article, How to Make (and Keep) a New Year’s Resolution, https://www.nytimes.com/guides/smarterliving/resolution-ideas, lists the ways in which we can stick to our Resolution. The article mentions the importance of establishing realistic, achievable, and measurable goals. It stresses the importance of breaking down a goal into small, measurable parts, and the importance of holding yourself accountable by making others aware of your goal. The article also discusses the importance of finding a community of people who are like-minded and focused on similar goals. As I know for my Recovery, having another person to walk the journey with me has made all the difference in the world.
What will help you to move forward in your Recovery journey? I encourage you to seek out the goals that are important to you for this upcoming year and wish you all the best in achieving whatever it is you set out to do…a day at a time. Happy New Year!