New Year’s Resolutions

I stopped setting New Year’s resolutions years ago. It’s not because I gave up on them by January 2. I’m quite disciplined and consistent with goals I set for myself. I just find that coming off of a crazy couple of months of holiday gatherings, cooking and hosting, all I want to do is relax. I tend to set goals for myself throughout the year and prefer this approach. 

That being said, I have been thinking a lot about how I want to spend the next year, what I want to focus on but without the structure and pressure of a formal resolution. I’d like to focus on me and doing things that make me, and only me, happy. This is something I already started in the autumn when I started to build a personal home library. I always told myself that this is something I should not have because I am a minimalist and owning lots of books is against the “laws of minimalism.” But reading and being surrounded by books makes me so happy. Why was I sacrificing my happiness for minimalism? 

Anyways, you get the idea. Now when I thought about this, I immediately felt guilty. As a mom, wife and woman, I’ve been socialized to put everyone else’s needs above mine, that putting myself first is selfish. It’s one of the biggest lies we’ve been told as women. I wake up every morning thinking about all the things I have to do for my family. I never wake up and think about what I should do for myself. It makes me sad to write that but it’s true. I’m sure there are many women reading this that can relate. 

Not only will I focus on my needs first but I am raising my standards on how others treat me. For too long, I’ve been the go with the flow “chill” girl but it’s resulted in me not getting what I want and feeling unfulfilled. I plan to be more out-spoken of my needs and not let people walk all over me. 

What are your plans for the new year? Will you consider joining me in putting your own needs first this year?