How do you choose the best New Year resolutions?

We have entered the last month of the year!

Traditionally you might give yourself some New Year resolutions on what you are going to do differently in the up coming year. Equally traditionally most people don’t keep to their resolutions beyond the end of January.

How can I choose resolutions which I am more likely to live up to?

You are guided not to rush your decision. They aren’t to be chosen quickly on New Year’s Eve as you welcome the New Year in. Quick decisions often lead to inappropriate or unattainable resolutions.

December is a good month to review your life over the last year. Things to consider might be:

• What has gone well this year and why?
• What could I have done better?
• What does my heart desire?

These are not questions you can answer truthfully in two seconds. Give yourself some time to reflect, in a situation where you have time and space to yourself.

My life is so busy, I don’t have time for endless reflection!

Everybody can make time if they really want to. As a busy single mum of two children and a responsible job, my best time for reflection was when I tackled a huge pile of ironing. My mind was busy with ironing so the clothes and I didn’t get burnt. But another part of me was connecting with my guide on how I could improve my life in the coming year.

The guidance was to:

• Choose things and people who make you happy.
• Choose one thing which aids your personal development.

Life is a gift and these two significant choices honour this.

How can I make my resolutions worthwhile and enhance my life?

The quality of your life and how you feel about it often comes down to your behaviour and how the relationships in your life are working.

A challenging relationship does not mean it is a bad one. A challenging person can be your greatest teacher. They can be offering you an opportunity to learn something.

Look at your relationships and consciously choose those which in the Next Year you want to put more time and energy into them. If you learn a life lesson, a challenging relationship usually improves. Some under nourished relationships just grow beautifully when you give them more energy.

Personal growth aids you finding and following your life purpose.

You may or may not know your life purpose. However, everyone’s purpose is to show up the next day and be the best person they can.

You can do this by choosing one new life value to follow the whole of next year and beyond. This might include such things as being totally honest in all you say and do, others might be compassion, kindness, gratitude, having courage to do the right thing. There are many more to choose from.

Don’t think you are wimping out by choosing just one new life value.

I chose honesty and it surprised me how hard it was to rigorously adhere to it. I thought I was a fairly honest person. But I found in conversation, I might not give the right spin to something to make myself look better. My soul prompted me to stop and correct myself. It was challenging in the early days but I improved with practice. In time it became quite natural and the following year I could pursue an additional life value.

Small steps are often the most sustainable.