New Year, New Adventures, New Possibilities

I roll my eyes a bit in early January when the two sides of the To Resolve or Not To Resolve camp duke it out in the battle for our new year mindset.

I personally choose to use the time to set goals for myself. The time of year may be arbitrary, yes, but we do use a calendar, so why not use it? I like to look back over the year, take time to remember some of the things I did or experienced, and acknowledge the path I took to get to December 31.

Many accomplishments seem small in the moment. And sometimes, they happen in the midst of a busy time that causes us to move past them in haste (I’m looking at you, summer months).

For me, 2018 started with a bang when the opportunity to go to New Zealand for two weeks landed in my lap. While New Zealand itself was a comfortable and welcoming place, the journey was a turning point for me. It made me realize that “someday” is often just an indication of where I’ve ordered my priorities. It’s an indication of my willingness to challenge myself, not of the feasibility of the journey itself.

I tried to keep that in mind throughout the rest of the year, and as a result, I feel more positive and proud of myself at the close of 2018 and open of 2019 than I can ever remember feeling.

I’ve set some goals, and I fully expect some of them to become irrelevant, some to get deprioritized, and more to get added to the list. And that’s perfectly fine.

So far, my list includes nine key goals for the year:

• Physical

  • Get >7.5 hours of sleep at least 4 nights per week

  • Do a 5-second unsupported handstand

  • Do 5 unassisted pull-ups by my birthday

• Mental

  • Maintain 2018’s streak of social media-free Saturdays

• Intellectual

  • Complete a draft of my first book

  • Take a Spanish class

• Avocational

  • Complete at least one international trip

  • Visit five new Indiana State Parks

  • Visit one new National Park

Do you set goals? Resolutions? My hope for you is that you can look at 2019 as your own opportunity to choose the courageous option over the comfortable one. I’ll be ready to celebrate with you.

Happy New Year, my friends.