7 Ways to Jump-start Your Year

Monday marked the Chinese New Year. I’m never prepared  to set goals and establish priorities by January 1 so I like to follow the Chinese New Year.  China celebrates the Gregorian calendar, but the lunisolar calendar has ceremonial significance. The Chinese New Year marks a special time to spend with family and honor ancestors.  Each year is assigned an animal and this year is the sign of the monkey. If you’re curious about the Chinese New Year check out these five things to know.  If you’ve already found yourself lagging on any promises you made to yourself on January 1 read on for some ways to help you jump-start 2016.

I’ve come to terms with the fact that I’m an idea collector. That is what I love to do. I love to think of ideas, collect ideas, dream up ideas, start on ideas and then not finish them because I’ve already moved on to the next idea.  Basically, Pinterest was created for people like me. I guess to sum it all up in one word I am a DREAMER and I thank God every day I married a DOER.  I do things. The problem is I get easily distracted so I do several things at one time and it takes me longer to complete them online casino go.  I’ve been doing a lot of reading and idea collecting on productivity, setting intentions and how to prioritize. You may have read this post on some of the recent self-help literature I’ve read.

Here are a few ideas I found interesting which might help you jump-start your year.  Some I’ve implemented and others I have yet to try.

1. Create a Manifesto– I’ve become slightly obsessed with Alexandra Franzen’s articles and love this one on 5 ways to write an inspiring manifesto.  A manifesto is basically a written statement declaring your intentions, motives and beliefs. It can help you clarify what type of contribution you want to make in the world. Part of my manifesto is “I love living a creative life and I want to live curiously and inspire others to try new things and step out of their comfort zone through my words and actions.”
2. Find out Your Habit Tendency– Gretchen Rubin has written a new book called Better Than Before. She explains the four tendencies which may help or hinder someone in making or breaking a new habit. If you’ve been reading my blog for a while you know how much I love quizzes. You can take her quiz here to find out which tendency you have and some tips on how to help you form new habits. I’m a total Questioner and not too surprised by that fact.
3. Batch Tasks- I read about this concept in the book Uncertainty and Melissa Cassera also shared this concept in a free download I received from one of her classes. Basically batching is about breaking down tasks so that you intensely focus on one project at a time for a certain period of time without any interruptions. It’s important to schedule a few pleasure breaks for food, reading or exercise while you are working on a specific task as well. I have a bad habit of jumping from email to social media and then to writing and back again. This post explains batching and the Pomodoro Technique in a little more depth if you are interested. It’s something I’m working on, but I still haven’t established it as a habit yet.
4. I love these 5 questions to ask yourself on New Year’s Day or any day from Alexandra Franzen. I did mention I’m a little obsessed with her articles. I could write a whole post just talking about my favorite ones.
5. Are you trying to establish a new habit this year? I loved this post on 3 Tiny Habits from Modern Mrs. Darcy. The premise is to find something you are already doing and then create a habit that follows it.
6. Bullet Journaling- I came across this idea on you tube and while it seems like a good time management system it makes my head spin. All of the steps are just a little too complicated for my brain.  For those of you who can follow more than two or three steps without becoming distracted let me know if you try it.
7. Not a reader, check out these Ted Talks to inspire New Year’s Resolutions.  I’ve watched several Ted Talks and sometimes they can be just the jump-start I need.

If you’re an idea collector like me, save this post to a Pinterest board to come back to whenever you need a  jump-start or share it with a friend who may need one.