With a few days left of 2021, many people are starting to think about changes they might like to make in the New Year. While weight loss goals and kicking bad habits are always popular, why not take the opportunity to dig a little deeper and make a commitment to something that will really enrich your life? From self-care to spending more time with the grandkids, here are five New Year’s resolutions that are worth keeping in 2022.
Practice self-care
From hating your wrinkles to mulling over your regrets, it’s all too easy to slip into negative patterns. When really, what you should be focussing on is loving yourself more. Ultimately, this is the secret to living a happier, more fulfilling life. So, what does self-care look like? The first step is recognising any negative “stories” that you believe about yourself. For example, you’re not good enough or you look too old for your age. Or that your relationships are destined to fail, or that you will never achieve your goals. No matter how big or small, these negative “stories” act as self-fulfilling prophesies that set you up for failure. Self-care helps to reverse these patterns and replace negativity with a resplendent glow. Need some inspiration? We love these tips from the self-love gurus at Tiny Buddha.
Minimise your waste
Did you know that every year hundreds of thousands of tonnes of food is sent to landfill by New Zealand households? And even though we have banned the plastic bag, hundreds of thousands of soft plastic bags are still used for food packaging every year. While With a statistics like this, making an effort to minimise your waste in 2022 is a resolution worth keeping. Even the smallest changes can make a big difference so don’t adopt an “I can’t make a difference” attitude. So when the New Year arrives try to remember your reusable bags, use reusable bags for your vegetables at the supermarket or green grocer, recycle your soft plastic bags (learn more about this at your local supermarket – pop in and ask them if they provide soft plastic recycling services), learn to love leftovers, relentlessly recycle, start a compost bin and grow your own vegetables. There are so many easy ways to minimise your environmental footprint so get creative and become an advocate.
Spend more time with the grandkids
While some grandparents adopt a “co-parent” role, others find it extremely difficult to pencil in quality time with their little ones. In-between work, school, chores and hobbies, it can be hard to find dates that fit everyone’s schedules. But ultimately, what you really need to do is make time. This could mean sitting down with your son or daughter and actively pencilling in dates that could work. If you’re really struggling lower your expectations and start with simple bonding experiences like walking the grandkids to school, taking them to their weekend sports game or offering to have them around for takeaway dinner every other Friday night.
Look forward and live in the now
Unfortunately, ringing in a New Year can often trigger feelings of regret. For example, you let another year slip away too fast, or that you aren’t as young as you used to be. Instead of dwelling on the past and constantly looking backwards, why not spend 2022 looking forward, living in the now and appreciating what you do have? It’s such a simple concept and can have an enormous impact on your overall sense of happiness and wellbeing.
A healthier you
Your twenties may be long gone, but the good news is that adopting a healthy lifestyle in middle age can have an amazing impact on your health and overall life expectancy. So many diseases and health issues are preventable, all you have to do is make the effort. From staying no top off breast and prostate cancer screenings to committing to 30 minutes of physical activity a day, spending 2022 working towards a healthier you is another resolution that’s absolutely worth keeping.
Will you be making New Year’s resolutions in 2022?