dec2015

HOLIDAY
By Candice Russell
It’s natural to make New Year’s resolutions.
The end of the year is a time for
self-reflection and goal-setting for the
next twelve months.
fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds in your
diet. Cut out white sugar (cookies, cakes,
and pies) and processed food snacks. Eat
lightly rather than gorging yourself.
Getting Real
With New Year’s Resolutions
Break the cycle
of failure that
accompanies
most resolutions.
Develop an
action plan that
will make you
successful in
reaching your
goals.
But the resolutions we make in earnest in
December are usually hobbled by failure
or forgotten by February. Why are they so
hard to keep?
The problem is that most resolutions are
either vague or general, such as “lose
weight” or “save money” or “be nicer.”
Who doesn’t want to be thinner, richer, and
kinder? But without an action plan, resolutions
remain wishes, year after year. Or
maybe you were never serious about the
topic in the first place.
Trying to lose weight realistically? Many
people get overwhelmed by completely
overturning their usual habits of food
and drink consumption. In a few days or
weeks, they are either starving or feeling
deprived, which leads to over-indulgence
and an easy excuse to forget about losing
weight until next year.
Start with a vigorous and regular exercise
plan with a personal trainer to make you
accountable, a gym membership, or, if
you’re
self-motivated, a
walking program which
takes no more than the right shoes,
sunscreen, and commitment. Adhere
to a routine for two weeks and you will
notice a reduction in weight. You will feel
better and have a stronger motivation to
change what you eat. Incorporate more
Another way to stay on track in losing
weight is to abandon bad habits and add
good ones. If you normally get a mocha
frappucino and donut every Wednesday
at Starbuck’s, make a subsitution for your
indulgence with twelve walnuts and green
iced tea. Supplant ice cream with sherbert,
frozen yogurt, or a fruit smoothie.
If saving money is your resolution, be
practical without getting a second job. A
money reporter on National Public Radio
recounted an experiment he tried with
good results. He and his fiancée wanted
to save for their wedding. They paid cash
for everything in one year and when they
received a five-dollar bill in change, they
banked it at home in an empty coffee tin.
It was an easy habit to follow. After a year,
the couple found that they had easily accumulated
more than $5,000.
Of course, you can do the same thing with
bills of lesser or greater denominations.
See how much you can accumulate rather
painlessly in a short period of time.
If you have a specific goal in mind, it is a
further spur to save money. Keep motivated
by thinking of the reward at the end
of your saving – a new car, a trip to Asia,
a birthday party at a favorite restaurant, or
funding your child’s first year of college.
The third popular New Year’s resolution is
“be nicer.” Try a few simple things. If the
person in front of you at the grocery store
is short on funds, step up and pay the
difference.
Do you have an older person in your
neighborhood or a relative who lives
alone? Either telephone that person or
knock on his/her door with a plate of
cookies and pay a short visit. Caring gestures
like this mean a lot.
Be nicer by smiling more. Pay genuine
compliments to loved ones and co-workers.
Plan to volunteer at an animal shelter or
homeless shelter at least once a month. P
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DECEMBER 2015