Wow! It is January 31st and I could not be more surprised that the month is gone. Today’s post reflects on those commitments I set out at the beginning of 2017 (Happy New Year!) With only one month in the books, there’s still time to get out and work hard, but there is also a whole month gone that we cannot have back. Whether you look at it as a month gone, or days gone, it is still 8% of the year GONE. Okay? It is gone guys. We cannot have it back.
For the rest of this post, it is totally up to you if you want to read on or stop right now. What I ask is that you take a look at the template below and fill in your own resolutions and reflections. Write our your resolution as a full sentence. Then, reflect on what you did well, what you didn’t do well, and what you are going to do better. Finally, tomorrow (or today if you’re feeling really ambitious) hit the restart button. I advise making an actual motion to an imaginary button and saying, “I restart now.” while pressing it for full effect.
I will be committed to my daily tasks: workout, Shakeology, personal development, social media posts, and 750words.
For the most part, I am succeeding very well with this. I have not missed a single day of T25 Alpha Round since I began. This is something I did really without thinking, and it makes perfect sense. I know there are people counting on me to show up and put in the hard work. I have the women in my accountability group counting on me to lead by example. I have my fellow coaches counting on me to show up everyday just like they do. And, I have all of my followers on Facebook and Instagram who see me and stay motivated with me. I have not missed any days of posting to social media, and I am finding that posting is fairly effortless now. I used to be an under sharer on social media, though I am somewhat of an overshared in real life. The result was a lot of posts that I typed out and deleted, and a lot of posts that stayed in my head. However, this year I am taking more pictures of my life to share. I am thinking more about what people are responding to, and trying to do more of that. I am participating in discussions in my groups and on statuses to share what’s on my brain. And you know what? I feel so much better doing it. I know this isn’t for everybody, but I definitely feel called to share and discuss. After all, that is part of the purpose of this blog.
I fell short because I have missed one day of my 750 words. I began writing, stopped, and forgot that I didn’t complete my 750 words. But I didn’t let it get me down. I got right back into it the next day and worked on keeping up my routine, so far so good. I have missed one day of Shakeology as well, because my blender was in the dishwasher and I fell asleep before it finished. I made up for it by doing two servings of 1 1/2 scoops later that week. It isn’t necessarily advised to do this, but I feel better knowing that I got the nutrition in without overloading my body by doing it all at once or two days in a row.
I will be aware of when I need something, and I will make sure I get what I need to remain happy and healthy.
So this conscious awareness is actually more difficult than I thought. I was hoping at the beginning of the year to do more reflection (daily) and guide myself through counting my blessings, struggles, and release all negative feelings. Basically what I found was that I was trying to build too many habits at once and my brain got really overwhelmed. I am hoping that a couple of more weeks with the current habits I am working on (I say a couple of more weeks because things always go a little extra screwy when classes start again) and this will be super easy to tackle.
I will commit to serving my community, and greater communities through my time and charitable donations.
I currently have a backlog of promised knitting projects, I have two projects that need to be completed for people close to me, preferably before winter ends. Then I have to make brain hats for the scientists because how awesome is that? And I have a plan to start donating one of every two projects, minimum, that I knit. I have a couple of organizations in mind, but if you readers have any suggestions for me I would be very open to that as well. I begin tutoring underrepresented youth again today and I am so excited. These kids always bring me joy and happiness, and seeing their passions shine is so heartwarming. Outside of that, I feel like I can certainly do more for my community. I feel like I haven’t searched for ways to really stick my neck out and serve. So again, any readers in the Iowa City area who know of local opportunities, or any readers who know of opportunities I can do remotely, please send them my way.
This type of reflection is good for recognizing where your voids are, and what you nee to fill them. Sometimes the answers will not come without talking them out with someone else, and I am always there to be that person for my friends. I do believe sharing your goals and struggles is a great way to find a support network that can cater to your needs, but I also understand that it isn’t for everybody. The one thing I will say is that if you did not try anything new in January, if you did not take the time to try to change something that you wanted changed in a NEW way, that should be a priority for February. It takes a lot to recognize that something isn’t working out the way you want it to, and still more to recognize that change needs to occur. But I can tell you, I do not know a single person who took that leap of faith and regretted it.
Peace, love, happiness, and dreams.
She’s Got a Whole PhD 