{"id":469,"date":"2021-12-28T11:55:55","date_gmt":"2021-12-28T17:55:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/79gifts.com\/blog\/?p=469"},"modified":"2021-12-28T11:56:00","modified_gmt":"2021-12-28T17:56:00","slug":"my-realistic-new-years-resolutions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.79gifts.com\/blog\/my-realistic-new-years-resolutions\/","title":{"rendered":"My Realistic New Year&#8217;s Resolutions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" src=\"http:\/\/79gifts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/new-years-day-4705447_640.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-470\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.79gifts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/new-years-day-4705447_640.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.79gifts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/new-years-day-4705447_640-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.79gifts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/new-years-day-4705447_640-624x415.jpg 624w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The phrase \u201cbroken promises\u201d must have originated with New Year\u2019s resolutions.&nbsp;<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Raise your hand if you\u2019ve ever pledged to make a resolution and never followed through or didn\u2019t attempt it in the first place.&nbsp;<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Wow, I was expecting a lot of hands but not that many!<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Count me among the resolution-breakers. There\u2019s no shame in not fulfilling them because life tends to take up a lot of physical and mental real estate for us humans. That said, resolutions that are practical and suited to you are more attainable because you\u2019ll actually <em>want <\/em>to pursue them.&nbsp;<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With that in mind, I\u2019m going to share some of mine that may even align with yours.&nbsp;<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3><strong>Five Minutes of Daily Meditation<\/strong><br><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>I see your eye-roll, now stop it!&nbsp;<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Meditation this, meditation that. Everyone talks about it and mindfulness, and it can be downright annoying. But the positive, healthy effects of meditation are not B.S. Take this article from Mayo Clinic called <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mayoclinic.org\/tests-procedures\/meditation\/in-depth\/meditation\/art-20045858\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">Meditation: A Simple, Fast Way To Reduce Stress<\/a>. First of all, great headline, and second, the benefits are numerous and supported by medical science:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Gaining a new perspective on stressful situations<\/li><li>Building skills to manage your stress<\/li><li>Increasing self-awareness<\/li><li>Focusing on the present<\/li><li>Reducing negative emotions<\/li><li>Increasing imagination and creativity<\/li><li>Increasing patience and tolerance<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Similar to how lifting weights strengthens your biceps, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/alicegwalton\/2015\/02\/09\/7-ways-meditation-can-actually-change-the-brain\/?sh=425dd2fd1465\">meditation exercises the brain<\/a>, possibly resulting in healthier neurological activity \u201cfrom changes in grey matter volume to reduced activity in the \u2018me\u2019 centers of the brain to enhanced connectivity between brain regions,\u201d per Forbes.&nbsp;<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3><strong>Weekly Yoga<\/strong><br><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Yoga is meditation\u2019s kissing cousin and comes with its own set of health benefits.&nbsp;<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hopkinsmedicine.org\/health\/wellness-and-prevention\/9-benefits-of-yoga\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">hopkinsmedicine.com<\/a> (as in Johns Hopkins, which knows a thing or two about health), \u201c&#8230; if you\u2019re going through an illness, recovering from surgery or living with a chronic condition, yoga can become an integral part of your treatment and potentially hasten healing.\u201d<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Specifically, yoga is shown to:<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Improve strength, balance, and flexibility&nbsp;<\/li><li>Help with back pain-relief&nbsp;<\/li><li>Alleviate arthritis symptoms<\/li><li>Promote heart health&nbsp;<\/li><li>Help you get better sleep<\/li><li>Increase energy<\/li><li>Manage stress<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>We could all use some of that.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3><strong>Read More Non-Fiction Books<\/strong><br><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>I like to think that I\u2019m a relatively humble person, but I do like to crow about the amount of reading I do.&nbsp;<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I mentioned in an <a href=\"http:\/\/79gifts.com\/blog\/?p=449\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">earlier blog post<\/a> that as of early November I\u2019d read over 70 books. Now I\u2019m up to 85. However, the majority have been fiction, which there\u2019s nothing wrong with, but I want to sprinkle in more non-fiction. My list includes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>The Burning House<\/li><li>Race Matters<\/li><li>The Color of Law<\/li><li>Mindfulness<\/li><li>The 4% Fix<\/li><li>The Magic of Thinking Big<\/li><li>I Thought It Was Just Me (but it isn&#8217;t): Making the Journey from &#8220;What Will People Think?&#8221; to &#8220;I Am Enough&#8221;<\/li><li>The New One Minute Manager<\/li><li>Joy at Work: Organizing Your Professional Life<\/li><li>Find Your Why: A Practical Guide for Discovering Purpose for You and Your Team<\/li><li>The Princess Spy<\/li><li>No Ordinary Time<\/li><li>Lincoln\u2019s Last Trial<\/li><li>Founding Mothers<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>If you have any recommendations, please put them in the comments section.&nbsp;<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3><strong>Reduce Social Media Time&nbsp;<\/strong><br><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Now raise your hand if you\u2019ve gone down the social media rabbit hole more times than you\u2019d like to admit.&nbsp;<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What has two thumbs, makes gift baskets, and is guilty of Facebook rants and doom-scrolling? Me!&nbsp;<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are certainly benefits to social media&#8211;connection, creative ways to market your business, helpful information&#8211;but it also triggers negative emotions like anger, envy, frustration, etc. Citing various studies, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.medicalnewstoday.com\/articles\/social-media-and-mental-health\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">Medical News Today<\/a> reports that social media use is linked to depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem.\u00a0<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I don\u2019t need that, so in 2022, I am going to be more judicious with my social media time.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You know, this is a pretty doable list, and damn it, I\u2019m going to make it happen. With the few days left before 2022, I hope this inspires you to create one of your own. Happy New Year!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Please subscribe to our blog post and follow us on <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/lise.schleicher\"><strong>Facebook <\/strong><\/a><strong>and <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/liseschleicher\/\"><strong>LinkedIn<\/strong><\/a><strong>.<\/strong><br><br><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The phrase \u201cbroken promises\u201d must have originated with New Year\u2019s resolutions.&nbsp; Raise your hand if you\u2019ve ever pledged to make a resolution and never followed through or didn\u2019t attempt it in the first place.&nbsp; Wow, I was expecting a lot of hands but not that many! Count me among the resolution-breakers. There\u2019s no shame in [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.79gifts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/469"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.79gifts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.79gifts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.79gifts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.79gifts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=469"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.79gifts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/469\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":471,"href":"https:\/\/www.79gifts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/469\/revisions\/471"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.79gifts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=469"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.79gifts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=469"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.79gifts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=469"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}