New Year, Same Old Boring You
What is your New Year's Resolution?
One of the most popular aspects of a new year is the influx of New Year’s resolutions to the world. I’m sure you’ve heard and even considered many New Year’s resolutions of your own. Maybe you plan to lose weight, or perhaps you’re going to make the commitment to finally get into shape? Unfortunately, it is a scientific fact that 88% of people who make these resolutions fail. Those who plan to lose weight don’t stick with it, and those who try to get into shape settle with the fact that round is a shape!
It is my suggestion that instead of a drastic New Year’s resolution, you take this opportunity to try and improve yourself on an ongoing basis. Here are seven self-improvement tips we recommend you explore in the New Year, and throughout 2012.
7. Better Communication Skills.
Unless you’re a total hermit (which is a self improvement issue all within itself) you can benefit from better communication skills. I say that because communication is the corner stone of society as we know it. Ask your friends, family or spouse, children or boss if you have room for improvement in that area and request they be specific. Maybe you’d be more effective if you learned to scale back in an opinioned discussion and try to listen more? On the flip side maybe you have some compelling thoughts to share but miss out by keeping them to yourself? Whatever the case may be, improved communication skills can have a positive impact at home and in the business world. As Goldilocks and the Three Bears would say, we want your communications skills to be juuuuust right!
6. Give A Little, Get A Lot.
It only takes one person to make a difference and you need to realize that simple difference from one person can change lives. In the New Year, think about how you can give back to your peers, the homeless, and other charities that are important to you. You don’t have to give money if you don’t want to, instead think about how you can contribute on a personal, active level. Consider collecting donations from your office or lobby your school do some community service. If you hit a roadblock in your quest to help, don’t worry. For every group of people that isn’t interested in helping there is another group of people who will. You’ll also be super popular because charity and giving is super cool.
5. Forgive And Forget
If you’ve been holding a nasty grudge against someone close to you, or even someone who isn’t close to you, use the new year as a time to let it go. Resentment is like a poison that festers into other aspects of your life. The most crumby thing about resentment is the awful feeling you’re experiencing isn’t even affecting the other person. If self improvement is important to you, realize that you alone hold the key to salvation. Forgive, then forget. You’ll feel happier about it and lighter too. Nobody likes to carry around a burden… except Ebenezer Scrooge. And we don’t like him!
4. Live Without Fear
Fear, not money, is the root of all evil. Fear leads to everything from missed opportunities, injuries in sport, and even global wars! There isn’t a way to completely rid yourself of fear, but how you deal with situations you find fearful is something you can control. If you refuse to let fear stand in your way and say Yes when you would normally say No, you’ll be surprised just how much you’re capable of achieving. The sky is your limit! Speaking of the sky, if Wilber and Orville Wright did not decide to conquer humanities fear of flying, would we have airplanes? Think about it…
3. Go Back to School!
As they say, knowledge is power. This fact could not be truer in today’s world. With the economy in a perpetual state of uncertainty and the job market as fiercely competitive as ever, giving yourself the edge over your peers through education will help you succeed in life over and over again. If your career isn’t something you want to learn about, you don’t have to. Instead, study a hobby of yours and get more out of your interests. Learn about Science! Law! Healthcare! Expand your brain and expand your horizons. If you go back to school you literally have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
2. Dare To Love.
There are a lot of single people out there in the big bad world who have given up on love. Maybe you’ve been hurt, or maybe you just can’t seem to find the motivation to date. Tip number 2 is a challenge to find that motivation! Make no mistake; you deserve to love and to be loved in return. What if you never learned how to ride a bike because you were afraid of falling? How sad would that be? Loving is no different. Open your heart. Love like you’ve never been hurt. Allow someone to love you back. Whatever happens, you’re in for a wild ride! As they say, better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all.
1. Join A Free Online Dating Website!
Whatever your motivation, joining an online dating website opens your small world into a chasm of opportunity! Through online dating you get to meet a new friend, find a pen pal, go on a few dates, or perhaps even find the love of your life. Dating online is so much more than finding your match; it is an opportunity to grow as a person while you learn more about yourself and the world around you. One in every 4 relationships these days start online. Whomever you don’t marry will likely become a friend, or at the minimum give you interesting memories to look back upon. In 2012, join a dating website, tell a friend about it, and go enjoy yourself.
