5 New Year Resolutions To A Happier You
By: Jonathan W
Tags: New Year Resolution, Positive Encouragement, Good Vibes, Change, Happiness

January 1, 2021 allows us to reflect on the year of 2020 as a whole. It was a challenging year filled with uncertainties from a pandemic, a tumultuous economy, and a never-before-seen election year in America. Most of us were bombarded with depressing news that made it feel like 2020 is the beginning of a terrible decade. However, any defeat we faced in 2020 is only temporary and giving up is what makes it permanent. We continue to take steps, no matter how small, as long as they’re in the right direction. Here are 5 steps you can take to a happier & more successful 2021.

Photo by Lidya Nada.

Read One Book Per Month

Our species has only been in existence for mere seconds compared to the age of the universe, but that time has produced billions of people with experiences ranging in thousands of years. It is likely that the challenge you’re facing has been experienced by someone else, and if we’re lucky, their experience was documented. Many world leaders are advocates of personal development through reading. U.S Marine General James Mattis says:

“Thanks to my reading, I have never been caught flat-footed by any situation, never at a loss for how any problem has been addressed (successfully or unsuccessfully) before. It doesn’t give me all the answers, but it lights what is often a dark path ahead.”

Reading doesn’t have to be a competition nor a chore. It is simply a tool that can be used to improve any part of our character. Any New Year Resolution you have (or any goal for that matter) starts with reading and learning from the experiences of others. Try one book a month, reading fiction/non-fiction whenever & wherever you can. Any knowledge you add to your stockpile grows over time with everything else you’ve put in there, like interest in the bank.

Photo by Bethany Laird.

Throw A Dart On A Map

Another effective tool for personal development is travelling (a personal favorite of mine). You might meet fellow travellers or locals that you stay in touch with for many years. You might take a break from your job to go work on a farm in New Zealand. You might witness part of a culture that you feel would be valuable to bring back home. Experiencing different traditions, eating the local foods, & participating in the local culture opens our mind to unlimited possibilities.

Travelling used to be a niche hobby because of its costs, but it doesn’t have to be expensive. There are many resources compiled by low-cost travellers that can get you started. They find creative ways to cut down costs on lodging, transportation, experiences, & eateries. There are forums and YouTube channels dedicated for these discussions. Travelling also doesn’t have to be international. Start small and check out what’s around you.

Photo by Yousef Alfuhigi.

Explore Your Hidden Skills

The pandemic made me think of some activities I can do with my partner at home, so we tried painting. We bought a watercolor painting kit for beginners, a bottle of wine, and created our own masterpieces. Some of us are left-brained and mostly analytical & methodical in our thinking. Some of us are right-brained and tend to be more creative & artistic. Personally, I have an engineering background and part of the left-brained group, but I have come to enjoy our painting sessions.

If painting isn’t your thing, you might try dancing. There are many forms of dance and one is bound to connect with you on a personal level. If you’re a right-brainer, you might try a technical project like building a smart mirror. Just imagine yourself in a parallel universe and ask what that version of you might do for a hobby.

Be In Control Of Your Media Consumption

Social media and news are a necessary part of our daily lives. We are social creatures that have survived this far because we share information and understand the things that may hurt us. News is by-design depressing because that form of news is generally an effective survival strategy. If you live in an area prone to hurricanes, you want to know when one is coming and what you can do to protect yourself & your family.

However, too much of that negativity is a burden on your mental & emotional health. In gaming, they have a saying “dead DPS (damage-per-second) is no DPS”. If the gamer’s character is a glass cannon and can output insane damage-per-second, but dies too fast to make a difference, then all that potential damage is useless. Similarly, we might be consuming so much media to understand the dangers around us, but all the negativity gives us an abysmal outlook on life.

If we look at humankind from the stratosphere and over thousands of years, we have accomplished so much and we continue to trend upwards. There are many daily uplifting stories in science, technology, health, environment, entertainment, sports, and business. That is the mission of Hapinews and it might bring balance to your daily media consumption.

Photo by Mark Adriane.

Ichigo Ichie

That is a saying in Japan which embodies the philosophy that every moment spent in an encounter should be highly treasured, for it will never occur again. Even if you meet that person again, it is not the same because we are constantly changing. Some encounters plant seeds that take root over time, while others change the course of one’s life in a single moment. This philosophy is actionable in our daily lives by sharing genuine moments of connection with others. By being human.

In other words, be kind to others. Look for opportunities to help out. And as Fred Rogers says, look for the helpers.