This post may contain affiliate links. Every link is hand-selected by our team, and it isn’t dependent on receiving a commission. You can view our full policy here.
Every year, I get a little crazy about setting goals. It’s been a tradition: January 1st, Nate and I hit up a coffee shop to map out everything we want to do in the year ahead, listing up to 10 goals apiece and a bunch of joint ones, too. We know we’ll probably only achieve two-thirds of them, but we’ve made peace with that. It’s just good to look at where we’d like to stretch ourselves in every arena of life, then see which of those goals are really, truly worth pursuing in the year ahead.
In 2019, though, I’m scaling back. We’re 10 days past the new year, and as you can see, there’s no big goals printable or email push; just a simple, belated message: There’s joy in doing less — and being okay with less. At least, that’s what I keep telling myself, as maternity leave grants me a shorter to-do list that seems to take three times as long to tackle. Instead of pushing myself to do more, more, more, I’m simplifying things, so I can focus on two key things:
- Apologize less (unless it’s warranted). I say I’m sorry to chairs I bump into, and that needs to stop. Pronto. It’s something that’s drilled into salespeople, particularly ones who have to cold-call all day long (as Nate can attest), that it sets the conversation off on the wrong foot. Suddenly, you’re framing yourself as an inconvenience; something to be dealt with quickly and pushed past. Flip the script, and instead try gratitude: “I’m sorry for bothering you” becomes “Thank you for your time.”
- Zero in on the things that matter most to me: taking care of Emerie (and finding her a solid daycare!), a career that fulfills me (not just pays the bills), quality time with the people I care about most. Set aside time for those people and their needs, and give myself time to unpackage what season of life I’m in and what matters most.
That’s it. No huge displays, no dizzying numbers I have to hit, no dramatic transformations. Just living my life and finding joy in the every day. Here’s to a 2019 that’s every bit as delightful for you, too.
Top Photo by Amy Shamblen on Unsplash