Congratulations, you made it through another year in the world, and you should be proud – you really should. Whilst I am proud of myself for also having made it out of 2017 in one piece, I’ve decided to take the new year as an opportunity to reflect on my life as it currently is.
Although I don’t believe we need a new year to make a change, the start of 2018 brings a clean slate to work with and a fresh outlook on the next twelve months. I hope that in writing this, I can help you to feel inspired to reflect on your life also, so you are able to make the right choices for you in the year ahead.
If I’ve realised anything in my twenty-five years on earth, it’s that being a human is not easy. As we go about our daily lives there are decisions we constantly have to make – whether it be something trivial like what to cook for dinner or a big decision or commitment that could affect life as we know it. Then there’s the torture our own minds can put us through – upset for hurting a loved one, regret for not going to the gym, indecision towards all the decisions that need to be made and anger towards ourselves for being so indecisive all of the time. Yet, despite these decisions and the fact our internal monologues are continually pestering us, we still seem to function as average human beings, 365 days a year. Well done! Once again, you should be proud.
With a fresh year ahead and 2018 providing a blank canvas that many of us need, I believe it’s the perfect time to re-evaluate all aspects of our lives – what motivates us, what makes us happy and most importantly, what we want to get out of our time on earth.
It’s all very well spending 365 days moaning about how much you hate your life, how much you hate your job and how unfulfilled you feel, but if you don’t take the time to sit down and realise that you can change it, well, you are the only person preventing yourself from ever doing anything different. It might be that you once really enjoyed the life you live, but your priorities or motivations have changed – that is totally fine, and completely normal. We are, after all, only human.
I saw a tweet the other day that said:
This doesn’t mean you can steal from people or go out on a four-day bender without telling your family where you are (because, really, neither of those things should make you happy anyway). It means you shouldn’t let other people get in the way of your hopes and dreams. You should do things that make you happy because they make you happy. Don’t stay in a relationship that you aren’t happy in because you’re scared you’ll upset your partner – you both deserve better than that. Don’t stay in a job you’re unhappy in because your company will have to train someone new – you’re not bound to one job for your whole life, and it doesn’t make you happy.
Whether it’s something small like starting a new hobby or making more time for friends, or maybe you want to take a giant leap and kickstart your own business, we all have changes we need to make. Nobody is perfect. It’s just about figuring out the things that are important for our happiness and putting some changes into action.
And, just in case you want a little run down of everything I’ve just said, but in lots fewer words, here you go:
- You are an amazing human being who has made it through 365 days of every year you’ve been on earth.
- Take some time to re-evaluate your life, what motivates you, and what makes you happy and/or unhappy.
- Remember to try not to let other people get in the way of your own happiness.
- Figure out what it is that needs changing and understand that you are, ultimately, the only person who can make those changes.
You got this. Happy New Year.