Mid-Year Resolutions

It's no secret that New Year's Resolutions are rarely ever kept up with throughout the year. It's become so common to neglect resolutions that lots of people have chosen to forego making them at all, which just sounds sad! It seems counter productive to start off a year with the mentality that you will fail so you might as well not try.

I'm not saying making and keeping resolutions is easy, it's hard work. But who says you need to make such goals at the beginning of the year and if you didn't keep up with it by February then it's too late? There's a saying that I've recently latched on to whenever things don't work out according to my plans for the future - dreams don't have deadlines. There's nothing wrong with working towards something, no matter how slow it takes - because at least you did it at all.

So with us being halfway through June, we are now officially halfway through the year 2017. There is no rule that says we can't make resolutions at any other time in the year, so I'm going to declare June the month to make mid-year resolutions. Maybe you set out a goal to read 50 books a year but now that you're halfway through it you realize that goal might not be feasible anymore? That's okay! Reset your goal, don't give up on it completely. Make it 30 books, or 20, something a little more reasonable for the time you've got left. Don't try to squeeze in those 50 books in the last half of the year because you may stretch yourself too thin trying to add that on your plate. You've got to remember your own happiness and well being takes precedence over checking something off a list.

2017 has been so great for me and the funny thing is, I didn't really make any resolutions this year. Well, that's a lie, I did make two simple resolutions and they were: Chew less ice and be less bitter. I've only upheld the latter so far. That was an important resolution for me going into 2017 because 2016 was nothing but constant setbacks and failures and everything about that year left me emotionally drained. I made tons of resolutions (aka goals) for myself that year and surprisingly, I accomplished a lot of those things on my list. But mentally and personally, I was unhappy the entire time. I got to cross so many things off my list, but at what cost? That's why, in 2017 I decided to focus on personal fulfillment rather than achievement hunting and it's worked out so much better for me.

If you're not the type to set out goals or checklists and don't really do new year's resolutions, try a mid-year resolution - there's a lot less pressure riding on them. Here are a few tips to help you figure out what you want to accomplish for the rest of 2017.

First, manifest your resolutions.

I'm a visual/kinetic person, so for me, writing them down makes it a lot more final. Write them in a blog post, a journal, or on a sticky note and paste it somewhere you'll see it every day to give you motivation. If you're an auditory person, tell someone what your goals are, or say them out loud to yourself if you're too shy - just put it out there in the world so you've got a reason to uphold it.

Always remember: goals are aspirations, not obligations.

Don't beat yourself up if you don't keep up with your resolutions. All that matters is that you at least try and you can try again at any time you want. But also keep this in mind for others too. If someone decides to tell you their goals and you see they're not fulfilling it, try not to nag them or point it out to them, because chances are they already know they're not upholding it, they don't need that added guilt or shame. Goals are about personal fulfillment so it's not your place to inadvertently put them down. (Unless they specify that they'd like you to help them stop a bad habit, then by all means do your friend duties without being overbearing!) I'd hope they extend the same courtesy to you.

Lastly, keep them real and attainable.

As I mentioned earlier, you don't have to go all out and say you're going to lose 60 pounds! Because you have half a year left, make the goals a little smaller so you can achieve them with the time you've got left. If you manage to exceed the reduced goal, then great! If you met the goal you set, fantastic! If you didn't quite meet it, awesome, you still did more than you expected from the beginning of the year! If you keep your resolutions somewhere where you can see them, it can start to get pretty discouraging if you constantly see them and know you haven't made any progress. That's why it's best to stick to smaller, attainable ones. It's better to have accomplished something than to have given up on a larger resolution made back in January.



There's so much pressure for new year's resolutions with everyone asking you what they are and expecting you to uphold them throughout the entire year. With mid-year resolutions, you can still set out some expectations for yourself at your own pace. You can be as specific or broad as you want, set deadlines or keep your options open as long as you finish it (even if it took you longer than a year, at least you did it). You can tailor things according to your lifestyle and daily busyness.

If you want to make monthly goals, quarterly goals, etc. it might make things easier for you. Instead of reading 50 books a year, try breaking it up into small time sections. Read 10 books every three months, or 1 book a week. Keeping it small makes it seem less intimidating! Keep a tracker so you can monitor your progress. Seeing it (or telling someone about it) helps you feel like you are accomplishing something and can go a long way to motivate you.

So - what are my mid-year resolutions? I've got only got a few. First, I've decided to keep up with my original resolutions: 1. Chew less ice and 2. be less bitter. I've got the second one checked out perfectly, but the first one needs a lot of work (a bad habit I can't break!) Notice I set a realistic expectation of myself by not restricting myself completely. Instead of saying "Stop chewing ice" I decided on "Chew less ice." Smaller and attainable than quitting cold turkey. I can work my way up from there.

As for new resolutions:
Read more. Read 20 books.
Reading has always been a resolution of mine, and I never quite reach the quota I set out for myself because I get really busy throughout the year and I usually only consider reading new books as part of the quota. But this year, all I've wanted to do is re-read books I already love. I decided I'd still count them towards my goal because I still took time out of my day to read a book instead of watch tv. I've also decided for every book I re-read, I'll read a new book as well so I still make some progress. I start off small - a chapter from each book (old, and new) a day, at the very least. Small and attainable. As I make a habit of this, it becomes easier to read more and more each day.

Work out more. Twice a week.
The problem with "working out" as a resolution is that everyone seems to think you need to do a complete lifestyle overhaul in order to keep up with it. You need to start drinking protein shakes and meal prepping and going to the gym nonstop. I am not that type of person. But I do want to get in shape. So I'm going to start off small. A few at-home workouts I can do in the privacy of my own bedroom. That way I can establish a routine and work my way up to not being so intimidated to go to a gym. Small and attainable.

Do you have any other tips you'd like to keep yourself motivated to try new things? Are there any new mid-year resolutions you want to try out? Let me know in the comments below!!


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