2024, we’re READY for you.
No matter which year you’re reading this blog post, (we’re currently writing it at the end of 2023), let’s take a moment to look at your last year.
How do you feel? Are you content? Did you set out to accomplish what you had envisioned for yourself last January? Maybe you hit some of your goals and let others fall to the wayside. That’s ok! We’re not big fans of setting “resolutions” but rather looking at your year as a whole. Setting goals and intentions. We dive into the topic of how to set goals and intentions a bit further in this blog here. But today’s blog is looking at ways to create your BEST year yet. How we set up our years for success and some simple tactics we’d love to share with you, so you can do the same.
“Success”, “Accomplishments”, whatever you want to call them, look different for each individual. So don’t get too hung up on the idea of traditional “success”. Think of it more as what would a successful year, look like in your eyes? Maybe that’s eating a plant based diet, maybe that’s working out 4 days a week, maybe it’s having a stronger relationship with yourself. Define success for you, and go from there!
Now let’s get started. Keep reading to find out 7 Steps To Create Your Best Year Yet!
1. Reflect, Followed By An Action Plan.
This point is number one for a reason. If you don’t reflect on where you’ve been, you won’t have the abilities to plan your best steps forward. Every person who has their eyes on success, will reflect on what has and has not worked for them in the past. Carving out time at the start of the year can be a huge help in setting an action plan for the year ahead. What were things that worked in your routine? Is there something you’re most proud of? What could you work on to make your next year even better?
Once you’ve reflected, take some time to set out your goals. Break them down from the big picture, and create a step by step plan to make them happen. Goals are great, but if you don’t have a plan, they aren’t going to get you to where you want to go. For example, say you want to achieve a promotion at work by September. What can you start doing in the months leading up to September, to help you get there? Set up a 6 months plan, speak with your boss about your goals, set milestones you’ll need to to get there. A goal is just a wish without a plan.
2. Follow Through On What You SAY You’ll Do.
I personally fall victim to this one. Not always, but I have caught myself saying all of these things I want to do, and not always follwing through. To be honest, if I really want something, I do it. But some ideas, don’t come into reality. And that’s ok! But if something truly means something to you, challenge yourself to stick to it. In 2023 I gave up alcohol for 90 days. I said I was going to do it and I stayed true to my words. The satisfaction that came after following through, was incredible! I was so proud of myself. Do you want to start a business this year? Commit to a workout challenge? Cut down on sugar? Say it out loud and challenge yourself to stick with it. Sometimes when we tell others our idea, it makes us more accountable. Give it a try!
3. Incorporate Movement Into Your Routine.
We can’t stress this enough. Incorporating movement into your daily routine or even weekly routine, will make a positive change in your life. And this doesn’t mean going for a run or to the gym on a daily basis. This means just getting your body moving in some capacity. Movement produces endorphins, which means a happier you! It also makes you feel your best physically, the more we sit and lounge around, the more stiff we become. So try to incorporate a walk, some yoga or a few days at the gym this year, you’ll be glad you did. If you’re looking for a good starting point, we both love Yoga with Adrienne. Her YouTube channel provides access to a variety of videos for all skill levels. Let us know below, what’s your favourite type of movement?
4. Lose The Comparison Game
You’ve likely heard this one before. Comparison is the thief of joy. And in today’s world, social media feeds the need to compare. Think about it. What are you getting from comparing your life to someone else’s? You never really know what’s going on behind the surface, you only know YOUR life. And that’s really all that should matter.
Focus on what you can control, level up your life to how you want it to look, don’t compare yourself to someone else’s journey. Sure, maybe there are things about someone else’s life that you would like to see in your own. That’s ok, use them as an inspiration! But when you feel the need to say “oh I wish I had that body” or “I’d kill for a job like theirs”, catch yourself and say, “that’s awesome, I’m happy for them.” Now how can you apply those dreams and desires to your life? We’re never going to have the exact same journey as someone else, so use your dreams as ambition to launch you into conquering your own goals!
5. Build Out A Routine.
Speak to anyone who finds success through their daily routine, it works! Building out a routine is not something that is going to happen in a week’s time. This could take months, even a year! And not everyday is going to look the same. Perfection is not what we’re going for here. Use your morning routine as an example. Challenge yourself to wake up at the same time everyday, or at least 5 days a week. What do you do once that alarm goes off? How can your routine set your day up for success. If we want to hit certain goals, that will come with some discipline. Maybe you plan to wake up everyday at 6am and hit a 7am fitness class, that has now become your routine. Or you want to build a business while still working your 9-5 job. You’ll need to determine a routine that’s going to help you get the work done in order to scale.
Routines can come and go too, they may shift with the seasons. We’re just speaking from personal experience, whenever we are solid in a routine, we notice definite improvements in our daily lives. Things just feel more balanced, ya know?
6. Take Breaks
We cannot be running at 100%, all of the time. Take it from me, I’ve experienced it. Not giving yourself some breathing room and time in your life for breaks, that will cause burnout. In my opinion, the mindset of work, work work, don’t sleep, keep pushing harder, is a dangerous one. We NEED to take care of our bodies to thrive. Sure, people who commit their lives to work and see sleep as a waste of time may get to where they’re going a touch faster. BUT will they be happy, healthy? If you don’t have your health, if you don’t have balance, is it really all worth it? Set a sleep schedule, take one day a week to take care of yourself, spend time with family. In the long run, it’ll be worth it!
7. Use Scheduling To Your Advantage
Speaking from personal experience, incorporating a schedule that you actually follow, can be a huge positive shift! Have you ever wondered where the hours in a day go? Well neither did I until I started time blocking. Now I can actually see where each hour of my day is going and it’s been a huge shift!
As someone who has a lot on the go all the time, I need to set aside time to work on different projects. I even block off time for morning intentions and my workouts. I tend to schedule my days from 5:30am – 6pm at night and then leave my evenings open. We can do another blog post on time blocking this year if you’re curious how it works!
So that sums it up, 7 steps to create your best year yet! We have spent a lot of time working on setting up lives we’re excited about. From perfecting our routines, to incorporating more movement into our lives and getting better at sleeping, it has made a big difference. We hope these tips can help you too! We’d love to hear from you, what are you working on this year? Comment below!
Happy New Year Everyone!
xo
Cornelia & Meg
2 Responses
Hi there! This article could not be written much better!
Looking at this article reminds me of my previous roommate!
He always kept talking about this. I’ll send this information to him.
Fairly certain he’ll have a great read. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for reading! Love that you shared 🙂