Focusing on the New Year

I don’t know about you, but with the turn of a new year comes the inspiration to get more organized. Maybe it’s the fact that I get to buy a new planner (currently eyeballing this one right now) or maybe it is a desire to fill my evenings with busy work since the holiday parties and festivities have come to a screeching halt. Whatever the reason may be, I always take advantage of it.

With only 13 days into the new year, I’ve already started on my list of things I want to complete and goals I want to achieve throughout this year. I didn’t make a list of resolutions like I have in the past, but I did decide that before the end of this year, there will be plenty (if not all) of the goals checked off this list. If you are a list maker (like myself) you will understand how satisfying it feels to scratch things off of the list!

Since I’ve been feeling incredibly inspired over these last several days, I thought I’d share a few of the things I’m hoping to accomplish this year. Some of these are pretty small goals (more of a ‘To-Do’ actually, but hey, they need done!). I figured, if I put it out there, then I’d be held accountable for following through on my To-Do’s/2017 Goals. Maybe you aren’t one to make resolutions, but rather goals? I’d love to hear about ’em! In the meantime, here are mine.

“Bring it On 2017” (currently the title of my list!)

• Start a Christmas savings account – I say this every year, but the holidays can really take a toll on the finances, and being more prepared for the festivities is always something I strive for but never seem to do, until now! Even though my primary bank does not offer Christmas Savings programs, I did find a bank that does offer this kind of savings program.
• Closet Purge – While I cringe thinking about this one, I really need to do it. I have so many clothes that I never wear anymore, either because they don’t fit or I’ve simply outgrown the style. The plus side to this is more room for new wardrobe items.
• Pay Off Credit Card Debt – I’m not going to sit here and pretend that I don’t have debt, because I do and it sucks! While I am proud of myself for holding an arsenal of credit cards, should I ever need one for an emergency, using them for that new bag I ‘just had to have”, highly constitutes an emergency. (This goal is high up on the priority list, actually it should be #1).
• Implement and Adhere to a Stricter Budget – There was one time way back when (okay, really it was like a couple years ago) that I was great with my budget. Somehow, I fell off the wagon and I want to get back to really making my money work for me. I can sacrifice eating out from time to time if that means that I can save up for another trip to the Caribbean. (I found this awesome budget site that I’m using that has helped to make this process easier)
• Organize My Home – This one is pretty vague because, let’s be real, if I put a bullet for every area in my home I want to organize, there’d be 50 bullet points! While my dream is to turn my home into a miniature Container Store, I’ve realized I need to take baby steps, so I’ll start with some Rubbermaid totes and a label maker! Haha!
• Drink More Water – I might be one of the few who actually LOVE water. I especially love adding fruit (lemons and strawberries are my favorite combo) to my diffuser. I’ve slacked off with drinking it over the last several months and I have noticed a huge difference in my skin (its not as clear, and I get breakouts more often) and I get more tension headaches.
• Do More Meal Prepping – Here is another thing I’ve gotten away from that I need to bring back. It made my life so easy and I ate healthy too! Nothing sucks worse than coming home after a long day at work only to realize you have nothing to cook. Blahhhh. When this happened I always resorted to take-out and we all know that’s not as healthy as home-cooked meals.
• Read More/Scroll Less – I’m bad about this one. After I wash my face and brush my teeth I find myself mindlessly scrolling through Facebook or Instagram. While I love my social media, I’ve realized I need a detox from it every now and then. Plus, I’ve found that when I read, my eyes get tired quickly and I’m ready for bed after about 30 minutes.
• Workout More (cliche, I know!) – I genuinely miss how I felt when I would leave the gym and I’m dying to get back to my routine. It’s been way too long (I’m embarrassed to admit) since I’ve been at the gym and I’ve realized my health is so important and has to come first.
• Travel More – Since I’m done wedding planning, I have more free-time (and money) to put towards pursuing this goal. When I was a little girl, I was fortunate enough to travel a lot with my family but I also didn’t appreciate those destinations like I would now. I want to go back to the Grand Canyon and Niagara Falls and I want to add many new places to that list as well!

I hope this list has inspired some ideas/ goals of your own for the new year. Let me know what goals or To-Do’s you want to accomplish in 2017? I have a feeling it’s going to be a good one!