My New Year’s Goals…Not Resolutions from Lagom Adventures

It’s a tradition to set New Year’s Resolutions every year, and I’ve done them myself. Of course, there are those non-traditionalists who prefer not to set any resolutions. That’s okay too.

When I was thinking about I wanted to do for a Resolution this year, I caught myself calling them “Goals.” Maybe it’s all that teacher training and the emphasis on SMART goal setting that’s been hammered into my head. But it made me wonder…is there a difference between resolutions and goals?? You betcha!

A resolution, by definition, is the “decision to do or not to do something.” It’s set in stone, it’s firm, it’s unwavering and unbreakable. Wow!! Talk about setting high expectations! But is there such a thing as too high of expectations?

How often have you said you’re not going to do something, and within 24 hours you have? “I’m not going to drink soda or eat out or indulge in sweets this year.”…..24 hours later…”oh, one piece of chocolate won’t hurt.” Then afterwards you feel like crap! Which, if you’re like me, you partake in more of that behavior you vowed not to participate!! I often wonder when you set “resolutions” to absolutely “do or not do” something, if you’re not setting yourself up for FAILURE! Why don’t you just say “Happy New Year everybody, this year I’m going to be a Failure!”

A goal, on the other hand, is the “object of a person’s ambition or effort; an aim or desired result; the destination of a journey.” Let me say that again, “THE DESTINATION OF A JOURNEY!” (Man if that doesn’t just scream Lagom Adventure!) In layman’s terms, a goal is an ATTAINABLE target that one strives to reach throughout a period of time. I emphasized “attainable” because I believe that’s the most important part for success. It has to be something you know you can do! And if you mess up and “fall off the wagon,” no big deal, because, it’s like the old cliche, “it’s about the journey, and not the destination.” A goal allows you to make mistakes, it’s not as a finite as a resolution seems. I have a wooden sign sitting on that desk that reads: “365 New Days, 365 New Chances”

So this year, I’m setting goals! Well one goal actually: “To lead a happier healthier life.” This means getting physically healthier, getting rid of unneeded stressors, and participating in more activities that make me happy!

How am I going to do that? Well, back to teacher world, it involves these Action Steps (that basically all go hand in hand)

• Maintaining a Healthier Diet. I’m not going to say “go on a diet.” But I know I was at my happiest and healthiest a few years ago when I started eating healthier foods and doing more physical activities. I’m not going to let the bathroom scale dictate my happiness. I’m just going to focus on the things I put in my body and not over indulge and let nature do it’s thing. If you know me, you know I like good, rich foods. So I’m not going to stress if I go out and have a decadent meal once or twice a week. Because if I did “resolute” myself to “diet” all the time, first, I will fail because that’s not even plausible and two, I WON’T BE HAPPY!
• Don’t Allow Unnecessary Stressors to Weigh Me Down! A few years ago I had gotten to a point in my career and my life that I really didn’t have much stress. That allowed me to focus more on my physical health. Well last school year that changed when I got a new position. A very stressful position!! There’s been a lot of responsibilities put on my shoulders and I have a lot less “me time.” So first, I need to handle the stress that is just “part of the job” a lot better than I have. When I feel the need to “stress eat” I need to have an apple on hand instead of that cookie from Home-Ec! But the biggest goal is to get rid of those things that add unneeded stress. Like negative people on social media or people who like to share disheartening gossip that just brings me down instead of lifting me up. My new best friend on Facebook is about to become the “Unfriend,” not to be confused with “Unfollow,” button! If you constantly spew negativity and put down others (or myself which unfortunately happens quit a bit)…Sayonara!!
• Care Less! Yes, I know that sounds terrible, but let me be more specific. I will continue to care about my family, friends, community, and all the students who need my love. But there’s several times I’ve caught myself taking so many things to heart or being a “worry wart” about what others think about me or decisions I’ve made. This really hit home the other day when I was trolling through Instagram and a thru-hiker I follow posted a picture of himself butt naked on top of a mountain with the hashtag #zerof****given (but he actually spelled it out). I thought to myself, what would it be like to have that kind of freedom?! Now I know I can’t post pictures on social media of myself like that without losing my job and such. And I have no desire to do that. But I still could care a lot less about what people think or say about me and just “do me.” If I live my life doing what I believe in my heart is “right” no matter if others think it wrong, then the consequences be damned. In the end, I can walk with my head held high knowing that I’m a better person than most and I will be HAPPIER!
• Hike More, Worry Less! Yes I know another cliche, but it’s true! I love hiking and sadly I’ve neglected the outdoors quit a bit the last year. Due to my new job and those yucky stressors, I found myself sleeping on the couch during “hikable” days instead of in the woods!! For this action step, I’m actually going to assign a specific number: 52! That’s the number of hikes I want to go on this year, at least! That’s one hike a week. That’s very attainable!! I’m happiest on the trail, whether it be with family, friends or by myself, so this fits right in with my yearly goal. And let’s be honest, it should help with the “healthy” component too.
• Be an Inspiration to Others! When the original idea came to start blogging about our adventures, it was to inspire people, mostly super busy Moms and Dads, like ourselves, to enjoy life through new experiences and adventures. Once again, I’ve gotten a little behind on some of my blogging duties, because ,once again, I’ve been doing a lot of stress sleeping on the couch! So it’s time to light up my keyboard with more tales of our many adventures in hopes to give others inspiration to get outside of the walls of their house and “live a little!” And hopefully we will get more participation from all of our followers as well. Because we are just normal people and we are always looking for inspiration as well. So don’t be shy, and tell us about your adventures!

If I accomplish all those action steps, I know I will reach my goal of leading a happier and healthier life, naturally.

My goal for this post is that it inspires you to set “goals” and not “resolutions.” Do yourself a favor and start your year off on the right foot by setting yourself up to be a SUCCESS! I know my goal isn’t anything very original, but the action steps are meaningful to me. Take what’s meaningful to you and take it to the next level!! And remember, it’s about the Journey and not just the Destination!

We’d love to hear from you! What goals do you have for the New Year? Maybe your goals may help inspire others as well!

Happy Lagom Adventuring!!!