New Year, New Me: Resolutions

I know that it is an overused phrase, I can't help but want to bring it into a new light because while ironic, it holds a lot of potential.

I've always thought that those who mocked this phrase had a lack of optimism in their lives. To me, this phrase has potential to inspire people to do better and start something they otherwise couldn't muster the energy for. When we are given the opportunity to start new, our efforts to better ourselves are amplified. My favorite examples of this are those who create resolutions to work out, start reading more, learn to speak a new language, or just to take the stairs more often.

These are some templates that I found on google that are a good way to reflect and remind yourself of what your goals are. In college, I feel that some of us get so caught up in our school work (which isn't super bad but can lead to issues) that we don't think about why we came here.

Use these templates to help build your goals for the new year. To have this make a larger impact on your daily life, hang them up in your room or slip it in the front of your binder!

To Do List: Things You Shouldn't Forget About in College

To Do List: Things you shouldn’t forget about in college

Call your parents/ Guardians

-Just as much as you miss home they miss you. Don’t forget to check on them because their little babies (us) aren’t home anymore.When we’re stressed we tend to stress ourselves even more and forget about all of the people and resources who are here for us. Even just hearing my family’s voice, or their words of encouragement or that they believe in me or are proud of me motivates me to always be better and makes me so incredibly happy.

Don’t forget about your mentors

-We all have that high school counselor or mentor that helped us in some way at some point. Remember when they said “Keep in touch”? Do it! Call them whether it’s for advice, to catch up, or to vent about everything you’re stressed about. It definitely helps; especially if talking to your parents just stresses you out more and you need to talk (I’ve definitely been there too).

Take Care of you

-Being in a super hard class or having a schedule that is way too busy can take up so much time. First semester, there were so many nights I realized I hadn’t eaten since yesterday morning. There were so many hours of sleep that I lost over studying. I feel like our ability to learn and the health of our bodies definitely go hand in hand. When I haven’t eaten or slept it’s harder to retain information. Even when I get sleepy at night and ignore it, it's almost as if all of the studying goes to waste given that my brain is burned out and needs to rest.

Do things you enjoy when you get the chance

-We are all humans and we still have things we want to do, opportunities we want to take and people that we want to meet or have fun with. School is extremely important and may take up a lot of time but take a little time on weekends for yourself to reflect, do things you enjoy, and release stress you’ve been holding in all week. Life is learning, but life is also more than that so don’t forget to fully live your life!

I love college and learning how to adult. Part of growing up is finding a balance between juggling your work/school and personal life, keeping those connections that matter to you close, and remembering to stop and breathe and take care of yourself by doing those little things that are extremely important for your body to function. These are all things we forget about, so hopefully this checklist will help you remember!