I used to think that New Year's Resolutions were the biggest waste of time. I would tell myself that I would eat healthier or start going to the gym and then two weeks in I would find a reason to just give up because I didn't find the "new me", but this year I have a few things that I really want to stick to and I feel like if I say that I am going to do those things out loud then whoever hears me will hold me accountable. Now I know that January is almost over so I won't call these New Year's Resolutions, these are just my goals for 2019.
1. Play your ukulele more
I received a ukulele as a gift last year and have only pulled it out a handful of times. I love playing and singing for hours upon hours and not worrying about the other things I might have going on. I want to challenge myself to plan time for myself, to not worry about everything, and just have some fun.
2. Find a method for managing your time
I am infamous for committing myself to too much because I don't want to disappoint people. Being a full time student and working several jobs is enough but on top of that I am involved in several student groups and orchestra and am always spending time with friends. It doesn't feel like there is enough time in a week for me to get everything done. Last year I felt like I was drowning in everything I had going on so I purchased a desk calendar and used that in addition to my planner and also created an Excel spreadsheet of everything that I had to do. I think it might be time to bring that system back because I have never been more organized than when I was using all my calendars.
3. Say no once in awhile
This kind of goes along with my last goal because I can't say no to anything. I am a people pleaser so I feel as though if I tell someone no then the entire world will cave in. At the beginning of the year I got a message from an internship that I really wanted to take (and when I say really, I mean I REALLY wanted to take the internship). Unfortunately, my schedule was already so crazy that I couldn't put myself through the stress of trying to make that work into my life. I felt awful for saying no at first because I felt like I was letting the company down, but after I thought about it and talked with some people about it I knew that I made the right decision and I felt so good. And you know what? The world didn't collapse because I said no.
4. Stay up later
Now when you read this goal don't freak out. I am essentially a 70-year-old lady because I go to bed at 9 p.m. I generally assess whether or not I can get through the next day if I went to bed right now and if that answer is yes then you better believe I will be turning on my heated blanket and jumping into bed right away. I want to try and stay up later, maybe only to 11 p.m., so I can get ahead on my homework or clean my room some so hopefully I can stress a bit less about little things like getting homework done.
5. Write more
I always think that people who write blogs are so cool but I never thought that I would be able to write one myself. This year I am going to say goodbye to that mindset and actually start this thing. So welcome to my (hopefully consistent) blog about whatever I am feeling.
They always say (whoever they are) "Late is always better than never". These "resolutions" may be late, but I hope that I have given myself the time to think about what I really want to do for myself this year and hopefully in years to come.