Yes, the Year Is Still New
We may still be honing our New Year’s resolutions.
Those things that are important to us that we want to accomplish in the year ahead — and — how we can improve ourselves.
That “improvement” can take the form of many things pertinent in our lives.
It can be a promotion at work, a health goal, or learning a new skill.
But what about the things that we want to leave behind, the things that are no longer serving us, the things that are having a potentially negative impact on our life?
This might be easier said than done, but here are some ways to leave those bad habits in 2020 and not carry them over into 2021.
A Good Place to Start Is With Negative Self-Talk
It’s easy to be hard on yourself and let the voice inside your head spew negative thoughts. If you think about it, you won’t dare say some things you say about yourself to another person. All this negative talk could be having a poor impact on your health and happiness, preventing you from reaching your goals.
Here are a couple of tactics you can employ to turn off negative talk:
—First things first. Recognize when you are participating in negative self-talk. It may be so ingrained into your everyday life that you might not even realize you’re doing it. Focus on becoming more conscious of what you are saying and take note whenever you catch yourself saying something negative.
—When the thoughts pop into your head, counter them by saying something positive about the situation. For example, if you suddenly tell yourself that your skillset isn’t good enough to land your dream job, instead list to yourself a few skills you have that would make you a great fit for the job.
Boundaries Are Crucial — Here’s Why:
Most of us are constantly bombarded with requests from other people in this day and age, whether for our time, money, or attention. With technology, we are expected to respond to these requests via texts and emails immediately.
It can become extremely overwhelming and taxing on your mind.
When you give (that is, donate!) your time, you give away your energy.
It should seem, even be, obvious, you only have so much energy to give until you start feeling drained. That’s why boundaries are so crucial.
2021 is the perfect time to leave behind the old ways of letting people have complete access to your energy and replace it with positive thinking for the new year.
Resolve to start setting boundaries in 2021.
- While this can look a little different for each individual, here are some simple steps you can take: Set designated times where you check/respond to emails.
- Don’t look at your phone for an hour after you wake up and an hour before bed so you can focus on what you need/want to work on.
- Learn to say no. A lot of us tend to say yes to everything. We either feel bad or get FOMO (feeling of missing out). And while taking advantage of the opportunities we are given is a good thing, you have to learn when to say no. It’s okay to say no to focus instead on plans to relax or something else you’re more interested in.
Not Appreciating the Little Things Is Hazardous to Our Mental and Physical Health
We tend to get so caught up in our tasks and to-dos that we often fail to stay present and appreciate the little moments in life.
After all, it’s about the journey, not the destination, right?
There is so much joy to be found in all the little moments that happen throughout the day: the color of the sky during sunset, the warm/cozy feeling of crawling under a blanket when it’s cold outside, the friendly cashier at the grocery store.
Life isn’t all about the big things.
In 2021, it’s time to start appreciating all that’s around us.
One great way to do this is to keep a gratitude journal. Each morning, write down three things you are grateful for. These can be the small things you encounter or the things you may take for granted — like having a roof over your head.
It’s a great practice to bring into the New Year.
We said goodbye to 2020 just a couple of months ago.
Now let’s say goodbye to bad habits that we don’t want in 2021 and practice positive thinking for the new year.
Positive Thinking for the New Year.
Wishing everyone a year filled with health and prosperity.
Dr. John Tantillo is a marketing and branding expert known as The Marketing Doctor. JT utilizes his doctoral skills in applied research psychology to analyze the day’s issues and personalities utilizing his marketing and branding lens. This provides his readers with additional insight needed to understand the “new normal” in politics, news, and culture. Dr. Tantillo is the OpEd writer for Political Vanguard. He is the author of “People Buy Brands, Not Companies” and the Udemy course “Go Brand Yourself!” Dr. Tantillo is also the host of the popular podcast BrandTalkk, another way to talk heard and seen on YouTube.You can follow him on Twitter @marketingdoctor and at Facebook.com/dr.johntantillo. Read Dr. John Tantillo’s Reports —
Originally found on NewsMax.
Video created with InVideo
