As we begin yet another year it is normal (and healthy!) to reflect on the year that has gone by and consider our hopes and dreams for the year to come. It is easy to fall into the trap of wanting weight loss (what ever our weight might be!). But of course, as the statistics tell us for 98% of people who lose weight, weight gain will invariably occur soon after. This does not have to be another one of those years. Start the new year strong by establishing some different goals! Here are some 116 suggestions to inspire you for 2016…
- Pick up a language
- Learn to crochet, knit or sew
- Join a sports team
- Volunteer for a charity
- Plan a once-in-a-lifetime holiday
- Seek out an exchange or secondment
- Stay in better touch with your friends/ grandparents/ God kids/ nieces & nephews etc.
- Get more sleep
- Cut back on alcohol
- Change career
- Quit smoking
- Save money and/or manage your debt
- Go back to school or uni
- Read more
- Reduce social media use
- Go to church
- Join a chess club
- Start surf life saving
- Become a better time manager
- Become a better listener
- Be more mindful
- Learn to ride a horse
- Reconnect with estranged family or friends
- Try new foods
- Make exercise a part of your daily routine
- Pursue treatment for your eating disorder/ depression/ anxiety
- Practice self compassion
- Sponsor a child
- Sky dive
- Start an investment portfolio
- Learn to draw or paint
- Take more photos
- Complete an ocean swim
- Run in a marathon
- Raise money for charity
- Stop procrastinating
- Improve your mental capacity
- Take singing lessons
- Become a better cook
- Keep your room/ house/ desk tidy
- Grow a herb or veggie garden
- Stop watching mindless TV
- Be a better friend
- Pursue a promotion
- Get a mentor
- Be a mentor
- Limit screen time
- Join a choir
- Give blood
- Learn a musical instrument
- Learn to surf or ski
- Practice yoga
- Renovate or redecorate your room/ house
- Meet new people
- Take some chances
- Become more polite
- Find a life partner
- Start a family
- Manage your free time better
- Get a pet
- Be on time
- Have regular massages
- Turn your hobby into a career
- Learn how to defend yourself
- Start writing a book or journal
- Start blogging
- Learn to dance
- Go to the dentist
- Enjoy life more
- Change jobs
- Improve your fitness
- Become more tolerant
- Be a positive influence on loved ones
- Stop consuming diet products
- Play more board games
- Attend more concerts/ performances/ festivals/ live sports events
- Shop less
- Dabble in e-commerce
- Start a share portfolio
- Drink more water
- Become more cultured
- Schedule regular date nights
- Recycle
- Invest in your local community by joining a community garden or Mens Shed (if you are a man!)
- Reinvent your appearance by changing hairstyle
- Get/ remove a tattoo
- Make a documentary
- Write your memoirs
- Write down the stories your parents & grandparents have told you
- Put your holiday photos in albums
- Complete your tax on time!
- Go outside for 15 minutes a day
- De-clutter
- Throw out your underwear with holes in it
- Stop fat talk
- Participate in a “help exchange”
- Develop a bucket list – and start doing some of these things
- Cancel your subscriptions to magazines/ e-letters/ news feeds/ anything at all that makes you feel bad about yourself
- Stop trying to change the people around you
- See the shades of grey
- Wear sunscreen every day
- Stop checking your phone when you are in the company of others
- Pay it forward
- Undertake a volunteer holiday – build an orphanage or help baby orangutans!
- Find some regular exercise that you enjoy
- Buy yourself flowers every week
- Stop comparing yourself to celebrities or others
- Envisage your ideal life and take daily steps in this direction
- Stop gossiping
- Walk more/ drive less
- Complete regular random acts of kindness
- Be generous to others with the words you chose
- Let go of things you have been angry about
- Be carbon neutral
- Join a community group like Lions or Rotary
- Do everything in your power to make this the best year ever!
Finally, is there anything we have missed that you will be working on?
