10 New Year’s Resolution Ideas. Focusing on Self and the Planet

What would January be without the proverbial New Year’s resolutions?  Some vow to hit the gym and slim down.  Others resolve to enjoy life more.  According to the New York Times, four out of five people break their resolutions because the goals represent a general desire rather than a goal.   Read on for some practical, easy to master new year’s resolution ideas from my fellow green sisters for yourself and the Planet.

New Year’s Resolution Ideas:

1.  Acquire  permanent healthy habits rather than just conquer goals.   Becky of Glue and Glitter lists 21 Healthy Habits for 2014 that you can easily incorporate into your life.  One of my favorite suggestions is adding a  green smoothie to your morning routine.

Not sure how to make a green smoothie?  Becky has you covered with her book of 40 smoothie recipes to keep you motivated and healthy.

2.  Do it Now.  Shannon of Growing Slower believes that you should take the bull by the horn (ie your resolutions) and do them now.  Guess what?  You are just in luck.  Join her  no-spend month challenge.

3.  Take practical environmental steps that you can live with. Paige of  Spit that Out, loves her Keurig Coffee Maker, but not the associated plastic waste. So she found a practical solution to have her coffee and a healthier planet by buying bulk coffee and tea to use in her refillable k-cups.

4. Start cooking from scratch for better health.  Mary of In Women We Trust vows to start cooking more from scratch.   She states,

“If each of us replace just ONE organic product out of 10 does all this (below), think what cooking from scratch will do.

• 98 million gallons of water free of toxic pesticides each day
• 53 million servings of produce without toxic pesticides each day…” {plus 8 more compelling reasons.}

Sounds simple enough–just add one organic product to change your eating habits.

5.  Get active!  Abby of Mighty Mermaid Mommy  is channeling her inner mermaid and plans to swim 50 miles this year along with attending  the gym three times a week.

Perhaps swimming isn’t your thing.  “Being active” can include taking a 30 minute walk once a day.  Again, make it easy so you don’t bail from your resolution.

6.  Make meaningful resolutions.  Beth wrote in her Care2 article:

“This year, let‘s resolve to participate in more meaningful behaviors. Things that will make us feel proud on our deathbed, not just in the grocery store check-out line. Behaviors that increase joy, relationships and access in our communities, rather than ostracizing those that can’t participate.”

She suggested 7 meaningful resolutions which includes sharing our resources, attending  an environmental action meeting and donating to causes you believe in.

7.  Be more human.  Nancy of Surviving and Thriving on Pennies vows to be kinder, take joy in discovering new challenges, and loving her kids and husband more.

Try once a day to give someone a compliment or open the door for someone.  You will get hooked on being kind.

8.  Hugs instead of pointing fingers.    Lindsay of Lindsay Dahl points out in her post how judging others and ourselves can be harmful.  She states:

“It’s not easy to admit the mean and judgmental things I’ve said or thought, but it’s the first step in dissolving this harmful practice. If I want this pattern to end, I need to start with myself.”

So, start judging less and first feel empathy of what it is like to walk in someone else’s shoes.

9.  Be in the moment and enjoy the little pleasures in life.  Deanna of Tea with Dee  wrote about how her life has changed over the years and she felt she was missing out on life’s pleasures.

“I want to change this. I need to change this. Life is zipping by too quickly and I feel as though I’m missing a lot of it. I want to regain my innate ability to focus and live in the moment. I’m a deeply sensual person and I must take the time to indulge that need. If you’ve seen the movie, Amélie, that’s what I’m talking about. She revels in simple pleasures such as dipping her fingers into a sack of grain, cracking the browned sugar on the top on her crème brulèe with a spoon and skipping stones. Children do this sort of thing by nature but too often adults forego these pleasures.

I want to blow bubbles on the front porch, color a picture, enjoy the feel of soapy water on my hands when I wash dishes, truly savor the taste and texture of chocolate melting on my tongue.

Deanna feels the way I do when I sit and watch the bees in my garden.  Pure beauty.

10.  Lastly, hold yourself accountable but don’t beat yourself up.  Betsy of Eco-novice  each year holds herself accountable to her resolutions by writing about the ones she accomplished and the ones she didn’t.   I am very impressed how many goals she reached.

When I asked her about her goals this year, she answered she would like to find a homemade whole grain cheesy cracker recipe.  So, if you have a recipe for Betsy, mention it in the comments below.  Help Betsy to accomplish one of her goals.

Now it is your turn.

Join the Conversation:

• Which New Year’s goal above can you identify with?
• What are your resolutions?

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