![\"Philip](\"http:\/\/www.pikaland.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/tumblr_mezct8aSQ11qgixkto1_500.png\")
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The new year (as it so often does) brings with it renewed optimism, hope and with it, the best of intentions.<\/p>\n
Great intentions, all lined up neatly in the form of new year resolutions.<\/p>\n
Ah, the long line of promises you make at the beginning of each year to be a better version of yourself than the year before. To eat healthier, to move your body more, to be more present. To read more, draw even more, and to be braver when it comes to asking for more.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a good thing really, resolutions. So why can\u2019t we stay on track past February?<\/p>\n
Because it\u2019s hard to break 10 \u2013 or for the more ambitious among you \u2013 20 habits in such a short time.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s face it. That long list of things you\u2019d like changed or improved? They\u2019re there because in reality it\u2019s something you feel that you lack or aren\u2019t paying enough attention to. And that\u2019s really awesome because acknowledging them is half the battle won. The other half though, now that\u2019s a real tough nut to crack.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s easy to write down faults you have and what you want to do to improve it. But faults, like habits, are hard to change. So what works?<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve stopped making resolutions 10 years ago. But that doesn\u2019t mean I didn\u2019t grow or change. Far from it. I quit my job, I took on freelance jobs, gave talks, taught at a university, learnt coding (among many other things), read more, and traveled more, etc.<\/p>\n
Wanting to make changes to your daily life isn\u2019t just filled with affirmations on how you pledge to be different. It\u2019s about taking concrete steps, little by little, day by day to reach your goal. It\u2019s unsexy. It\u2019s tedious. It\u2019s hard work. New year resolutions on the other hand, can be like bursts of positive emotions and hopefulness, Instagram photos with random inspiring quotes, and stuttered promises made when you\u2019re drunk. Guilt and hopelessness sets in not long after.<\/p>\n
So here\u2019s what I recommend instead: make a to-do list.<\/strong><\/p>\n Not some fancy schmancy list of life-changing resolutions that you tape to your fridge on January 1, where it stares at you every day when you wake up in the morning when you grab your milk \u2013 only to be taken down, tattered and stained with failure and regrets of not being able to tick them off at the end of the year. No more.<\/p>\n Figure out what you want to achieve, then write down what you\u2019ll do to get there. Heck, you can even omit writing out the big goals. Just write out what you\u2019re going to do every little step of the way. I\u2019m talking about the most boring, mundane things that will trick your body\/mind to complete it. Don\u2019t just throw up a big life goal without a plan on how you\u2019ll get there \u2013 we all know when we don\u2019t know where we want to go, we\u2019ll just stay where we are. It\u2019s comfortable. It\u2019s nice. Change is hard. And we also know that if you don\u2019t pencil things down (and subsequently tick them off), nothing is going to happen. Step by step is where it\u2019s at.<\/p>\n So if you want to make a new resolution this year, do yourself a favour and start a to-do list.<\/p>\n You can thank me on 31st December.<\/p>\nIllustration: Philip Giordano<\/a><\/h6>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"