I am not a big fan of new year resolutions. Most of them are forgotten by mid-February, and I know too many people who “commit” to the same fluffy and undefined “goal” every year. If I decide to achieve something, I prefer not to wait for an arbitrary date. I usually start working on a step-by-step plan right away. But I still like the spirit of the new year, so this year I’ve tried something different, inspired by Gretchen Rubin.
Choose a focus word for decisions and activities
The idea is pretty simple: choose one word that you want to be your guiding star for this new year. The word will probably represent a question that you can use to make decisions and plan activities for the entire year.
Some examples, mentioned by Gretchen:
- Upgrade: How can I take my life to the next level without accumulating more?
- Bigger: How to think big and tolerate complications, how to expect more from me?
- Health: What can I do to create more healthy habits?
- Finish: Where can I close chapters to be ready for new experiences?
- Home: How can I turn my house into the cosy place I yearn for?
There is no correct or incorrect answer. The word you choose needs to resonate with yourself and no one else. Check #MyOneWord o #OneWord365 on twitter, for more examples.
Awareness: the opportunity to adjust my autopilot
Being aware means to pay attention to the things I do. It helps to discover things I enjoy doing, and stuff I don’t particularly enjoy. How can I consciously include more happy activities into my day-to-day? How can I replicate the experiences that made me feel joyful or content? How can I take better care of myself? The first step to change my life is to be aware of my current reality. Armed with this information, I’ll be able to act.
That means that my 2018 includes many more measurements without predefined objectives. I am well aware that “what gets measured, gets managed. Every Sunday, I’ll write down some key results that represent real activities – just to keep track on how I am doing.
- meditation sessions finished
- average number of steps in the past 7 days.
- km run and logged on Strava
- amount of travel days
- books read
- undistracted full hours spend with the kids
- [more might come]
Do you have a word for your year?
Minimalist Musings in Mataró 
> undistracted full hours spend with the kids
That sounds interesting and something I’d love to try, now that you planted this idea in my mind 😀
But my one word would be: Focus. Focus on my goals, work, family. No distractions.
Over the last two years, my awareness has steadily increased. Thanks to my meditation habit. So awareness is less of a problem for me personally. Instead I will strive to be focussed this year.
Thanks for this nice post!