You can start the New Year right with a positive attitude and noble goals. Traditionally, we used to make New Year’s resolutions way back in grade school every January. But what happened there and then? Did time outgrow our purpose and values in life?
So what should be our top goals this new year? I think we should start by maintaining a healthy lifestyle. That means let’s be more health-conscious not only because of the ongoing pandemic but it’s really important to keep a healthy mind and body.
Maintain a balanced diet, regular exercise; no smoking and excessive alcohol intake, and observe health-related protocols. Remember that health is wealth and when good health is gone everything is at risk.
Next is to make integrity a way of life. Integrity is the practice of being honest and showing consistent and uncompromising adherence to strong moral and ethical principles and values. It plays an important role in shaping our personality and who we truly are. It is the most important principle of leadership, business, and maintaining good personal and professional relationships with others.
Then pursue equanimity in yourself. Equanimity is defined as peak calmness and composure, no matter what life is throwing at you. According to Daniel Riley, a personal development specialist, the best way to achieve equanimity is to practice putting yourself in tough situations again and again. Just like learning to drive a bicycle, gradually what used to terrify you becomes routine and that is how you start to level up.
Another is to live a debt-free lifestyle. Debt is almost inevitable in life but it is manageable. It takes self-discipline to control your desire to buy using your credit card and savings. To avoid online and window shopping is to avoid temptation. To save is the key. This is one of the best goals in life.
Finally, maintain a work-life balance. It simply means there is a time to work and family time. One of the flaws of the new normal is work-from-home arrangements. There is no quality work and quality home time when these two are mixed up in the long run. Work is just one facet of life to make money. Don’t ever make the worst mistake of neglecting your family for your job. It is a noble goal to limit your work and to take time for all the other essential parts of life. Nobody regrets working too little on their deathbed, only too much.
You can have your own personal, health, financial, and career goals in life depending on your priorities. What’s important is you can fulfill them gradually at your own pacing without compulsion. The difficulty is only part of the process. It is your determination and persistence that will make you achieve your new year goals. Now, are you ready to make a good start?
Renester P. Suralta
Pardo Cebu City