Resolutions, Anyone?

Another blog post about resolutions? And here in early January? Oh, I am just TOO creative, I know.

Despite the obviousness — and oftentimes complete failure — of it all, I do like the idea of New Year’s resolutions. It makes sense, you know? Restarting a bit after the craziness of the holidays, making a few new promises when the calendar flips and is nice and clean, taking time to reflect on your year, yourself, your habits. (I certainly don’t think resolutions or goals are confined to January, of course, but can get behind the tradition.)

What are my resolutions this year? I want to write more. I want to start going to sleep earlier. I want to check email less compulsively when I’m away from work. I want to get better at being still. I want to be more content. I want to show myself more forgiveness, and remember to try to treat myself the way I’d treat a best friend (which sometimes I forget to do). As author and public speaker Brené Brown says, “Talk to yourself like you would to someone you love.”

Since I’ve been in the resolution mindset for the last few days, I’ve spent time reading blog posts from others that talk about their goals and attitudes for 2015. I found a handful that were especially lovely and inspiring to me, and wanted to share them with you as well:

• I’ve been a fan of Shauna Niequist‘s ever since reading her book Cold Tangerines, and I love keeping tabs on her via her blog posts. She’s one of those people who helps remind me of what’s important, and always seems to know just the right way to articulate her thoughts. Her post about her 2015 resolutions was no exception. “This year, brew the good coffee, wear the sparkly jewelry, crack open that fresh journal. Gifts are to be loved, to be burned, to be eaten and used up completely, reminders that someone loves us, that someone thought of us.”

• Kristin Maiorano was a grad school classmate of mine, and she has a blog called “Accidental Wisdom” that I’ve so enjoyed following. Kristin had a rough year in 2014, and it’s shaped her perspective on 2015 in a way I think we all can learn from. “So as I head into 2015, I’m praying that no one tells me how great it’s going to be. I don’t need the pressure or the expectations. While I appreciate the opportunity a new year presents to change lives, I’m not making any resolutions. Not really. I just hope I can remember to follow my heart, love deeply, appreciate the quiet, little moments of peace, and remember that a year is just a year.”

• The Kindness Blog — whose motto is “Because Kindness Changes Everything” — is a recent find for me, but I appreciate the way it reminds me to take deep breaths and be more patient and focus on the joys of life instead of the frustrations. As you’d imagine, they also give good resolution advice. “Being kind sounds simple enough, and in general, it is actually. That said, sometimes, I have a way of complicating matters by either over thinking things or leaving things up to chance, both of which can sabotage the best of my intentions. So, this year, I decided to focus on intentionally being kind to myself and to others to make it a daily practice and a way of living and being, not just a lofty concept.”

Happy 2015 — and happy clean slate!