Setting and keeping new years resolutions
Well hello there, long time no see. So long, in fact, that I’m quite sure no one will ever read this. I think the only people still reading this blog are ones who find it from the posts that are still indexed well on Google- thanks Daddy Google! But here I am because one of my resolutions this year is to revive the blog. I have big plans for posts all about life in Malta and beyond, but, sadly, the last few months have been monumentally shit. But not one to give up, I thought I’d just start easy on myself with a simple, mostly fully formed topic in my mind. New years resolutions!
Here are a few things I’m trying to focus on this year to make the most out of the 365 days I am (hopefully) given. I’ll talk about how I go about selecting and setting new years resolutions, and how I keep myself on track over the year. It’s also important to remember that these are just goals and there is no pressure if life takes another direction and I don’t expect to hit everything perfectly. They’re just a way to guide how I spend my time and how I shape my life to get myself closer to a better ‘me’ every day.
Setting new years resolutions
I like to keep it simple and keep it achievable. I’m not looking to set myself up for failure or increase stress and pressure in my life. I set some goals I believe I have a good chance of hitting, but perhaps need a little extra motivation to keep me on course. Things that will enrich my life, but I won’t be down on myself if I don’t achieve. I’m kind to myself in my goal setting, I don’t expect to hit everything perfectly, and that’s OK, but so long as I try, I make it at least a little closer than I was before.
First I made a huge long list of things I’d love to do this year. Things I’d like to do, do learn, to see, to experience. No limits, just a massive list of stuff. Then I went through the list and put them into similar buckets and categorised those buckets. I found some patterns which helped me to shortlist and merge a few, then picked the final ones after a bit of tweaking and I’m happy with what I was left with.
I tried to follow the SMART methodology for goals. Specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely. One or two are rather ‘yes/no’ and less easy to quantify but I wanted to keep them in anyway. Making them mostly measurable and time bound helps with breaking them down into smaller chunks and makes it harder for you to be creative with deciding if you hit them or not.
Keeping on track of resolutions
Once my goals were set, I put a 30 min slot in my calendar in early January to break the goals down into timelines and smaller tasks. I then added those tasks into my calendar.
For example for my annual savings goal, I broke it down into quarterly and monthly goals, mapped out how I’d do it (what I can spend on, where I can cut back) and then set monthly reminders in my calendar to review my balances and each month I will go over my spending and see what I saved, then plan for the next month.
Or, for this blog goal (one post per month) I made an hour calendar reminder to write a blog post once a month, plus created a note in my phone to list ideas of posts I’d like to write. So once a month I get the ping and I sit down and get to it.
My 2025 resolutions
My categories ended up being:
❤️ Health and wellness
💸 Financial
🧠 Personal development
🫶 Family + social
These were not predetermined categories. Once I had listed everything I’d love to do this year, these are 4 themes that jumped out at me and that each of my individual goals fit into. And I think they’re a good selection to focus on.
❤️ Health + wellbeing new years resolutions
Workout 4 times per week
Get one massage / facial per month
Get invisible braces
In the past I’ve had goals like “get fit” or “join a gym” which are a bit high level. I found that setting a weekly goal of number of workouts so much easier to plan for and measure myself against. I use an Apple watch to record my workouts so whenever I want to check my progress, I can see all my workouts and dates. I know there will be some weeks where I don’t hit this, but if I aim for it, I’m more likely to build the habit and reach it on the majority of weeks.
When it comes to the facials / massage, I set myself a reminder once a month to book something in for the following month. For January I have already booked a lymphatic face massage and for February a hydro-facial. I’m very lucky to be in a position where I can do this for myself on a monthly basis but this could also be replaced by at home massage- there are so many youtube tutorials and it can feel just as relaxing and beneficial to your skin.
💸 Financial resolutions for 2025
This year I have both a savings goal and an earning goal. I work in Sales so I can somewhat impact my earnings via bonuses and commission and I also do some freelance work so I can take on more projects. That said, I’m mindful that money isn’t the be-all and end-all so I’m not taking on projects at the expense of work / life balance. But I have two great projects right now that I really love and feel like I can bring value to and, increase my earnings as I go.
My earning goal is an annual one and my savings goal I’m adjusting quarter by quarter. So far I’m on target for my January - Q1 savings target, but let’s see how things go. Life recently threw a bit of a curve ball at my family which means I might have some extra expenses so I may not hit the savings goal, but at least it’ll help me be more mindful of my spending and not waste money on things I don’t need. I am already into quite good habits with savings, but still, having the goal, even if I don’t hit it, means I end up saving more than if I didn’t have this specific goal.
🧠 Personal development goals
Read 1 2 books
Downsize clothing collection
Reduce clothes shopping
Keep journaling
Reduce phone screentime to average of 3 hours per week (mostly concerned with Reddit and Insta, work apps, podcasts and puzzle games are OK)
1 blog post per month
I’ve set aside a long reading calendar block on alternate Sundays so I can try to get through a book per month and I also have a reminder to read for 30 mins before bed during weeknights. I know, for many, 12 books in a year is laughable but I have not read an entire book in years so this is a big improvement for me. I love reading but just never find the time but this year, by having the goal, I end up making the time.
I also have a daily reminder to journal. It’s something that really helps me clear my head and get my thoughts in order and deal with difficult times in my life, but if I don’t have an active goal it’s easy for me to let it slide. I too easily fall into a habit of just staring at Netflix so having the goal and the daily reminders makes sure that when I really need to get my thoughts down, I don’t forget or put it off.
🫶 Family and social
Take a girls trip with a core group of friends
Visit my friend Olga in Sofia
Take Mum + Steve on a Norwegian Fjord cruise
This category is a bit more difficult as it depends on others, but I wanted to have the aim and see if it can be done and if not, at least I tried.
Smaller, sub goals for the year
I then have some other things I’d love to try and get to, that aren’t quite big enough to be goals and are much less important. So I have some;
💕 Low stakes “things to do"
💪 Habits to keep
💕 Things to do
See more sunsets
Swim
Go to Gozo with Mum + Steve
Donate to charity
Local hikes / walks
💪 Habits to keep
Meal prepping
Home cooking
Calling Mum weekly
Investing / saving wisely
Now I know that a new year is just another day and doesn’t really mean anything. I know that we don’t need to wait til a new week, or month, or year to work on improving ourselves. But I need signposts and milestones and a new year is a great time for me to reflect on the year past and see how I can try to make the most out of the year coming. Sadly January has already shown me that life doesn’t give a shit about our plans but in a time of struggle, I have some of these goals to cling to, to bring a little brightness to the future.
Whether you set goals or not, I hope 2025 is great for you and thank you for reading to here, anyone who actually made it!
