Cheers to 2019

I’ve decided to use this platform to share what I learn, articulate my thoughts, and most importantly keep myself accountable to my goals for this year. No need to for perfection. Just get things out! As a wise friend told me, “I’d rather turn something unfinished in on a deadline, than to miss the deadline just to perfect it.” No sense in stressing over the imperfections, there’s going to be plenty of time to get better.

EVERYDAY IS A NEW OPPORTUNITY TO DO BETTER

The word resolution no longer has a meaning. It’s an ambiguous word that’s meant to fail. Instead we’re going to try for goals, SMART goals. For those that don’t know what a smart goal is, me prior to Christmas, SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Timely. For awhile I couldn’t quite understand the meaning behind Relevant until it was explained to me as “Why is is relevant to you, why do you care about it”. This might be the most important letter in the group. Without this goal actually being important to you, being Relevant, there’s no point in doing this goal at all. What is your why for your goals?

Main goals for 2019

  • Read 30 books by the end of the year.
  • Be credit card debt free by the end of September, just so I can rack up my debt again for Christmas presents LOL.
  • Help 3 people reach at least one of their 2019 goals by November 1st
  • CPC

I hope to accomplish other auxiliary goal that are not so specific but function as a cherry on top for a productive year. There’s a long list of these “mini goals” so let’s see how many of these I can accomplish in this year

  • Cook 52 meals by the end of the year.
  • Increase my reading speed while maintaining or improving reading comprehension
  • Develop better listening skills

Finally I also have habits that I would like to develop. One thing I learned about habits is that if you want to make a habit stick, start small. Very small. So small that you can’t fail. So small that you can even do it on your wedding day. This way you can’t fail. Take reading for example, no matter how busy you are, you can read 2 pages a day. But while you’re considering a habit you’d like to have, make sure it’s something you would want to do, every single day for the rest of your life. Or else why call it a habit.

  • Read 2 pages a day
  • Write one blog sentence a day
  • Write one task that must be done the next day
  • Reach out to one potential customer a day

If you happen to find this blog, I hope you enjoy this year with me! And if you catch me missing something, hold me accountable! I would appreciate it!

Let’s tie this in together so far.

Mini habits tells you to do one super super small habit at a time.

Atomic Habits, so far, tells you to focus on your system, not just the end goal. The end goal can be a one time thing while your system will keep you going. It also tells you about a few different strategies you can use. From habit stacking, removing the cues of your habit, making a cue obvious.

Don’t let people tell you to do less

It’s a wonderful goal to want to do more in life. However doing more means sacrificing your time with some people in your life. Although it’s understandable that these people want to spend more time with you, don’t let anyone tell you to do less with your life for them. Don’t let someone who doesn’t have your aspirations bring you down to their level. Chase what you really want and don’t let anyone slow you down.

What is your why?

Have you thought about why you want to adopt a specific change? Is it because it’s something you think you SHOULD do or would be good to do, as opposed to being because it’s something that would make you truly happier. We often want to change in search for external validations, but we’ll never be happy if our happiness relies on someone else.

Change your identity to change your habits

Atomic Habits – James Clear

A different approach in changing habits. We often try to change our habits so that we can change who we are. He uses the example of someone trying to quit smoking. We try to get rid of our habit of smoking so that we can become a non-smoker, but what about first changing how you perceive yourself. It would be easier to change your habits by changing how you look at yourself. Instead of saying you’re trying to quit smoking, first tell yourself that you’re not a smoker so that your actions can follow suit easier.