I personally love the new year, it’s an opportunity to make some fresh changes and to start the new year off on a good foot. A couple of weeks before Christmas I like to sit down and think about what kind of things I want to improve in the following year, focusing mostly on health, business, and my personal life. It’s a good idea to be really honest with yourself about the things that are currently not serving you and how you would like to change them. If you’re trying to figure out what to change, check out my suggestions of the top 4 vices to give up in the new year:
1. Smoking
One of the hardest habits to give up, smoking is widely accepted as a habit that is not particularly healthy for you. Many people consider giving up smoking, try for a few days and find it almost impossible to fit off the addictions. There are a few common ways to give up smoking, from starting with nicotine patches to changing to vaping which is easier on the lungs, through to giving up cold turkey. Chances are this will be the most difficult vice to give up, but also the most meaningful.
2. Quitting Sugar
Are you quite moody when you’re hungry? Do you have a few extra pounds around your waistline that you’d be happy to lose? Our modern diets based on convenience and plastic packaging are filled with sugar. While a little sugar is fine, if you’re eating excessive amounts you may be gaining weight and putting your health at risk of type 2 diabetes. Eliminating sugar completely from your diet may be a little aggressive, but even reducing it can have a huge change on your health.
3. Eliminate Overspending
Do you know how much you’re spending on non-essential items each week? Chances are it’s huge. Those $5 coffees add up quickly, a beer here and there a few times a week, as well as eating out during the weekends. If saving is a priority for 2018 for you, then getting your overspending out of control is the fastest way to have more free money to save each month. Set yourself a free-spending budget and once that’s gone, don’t spend any more on nonessential items. It’ll likely be hard the first month, but by the end of the year when you have extra money in your account, you’ll be so glad you did.
4. Cut Down on Drinking
It can be so easy to get into the habit of going every night for an after work beer, spending Friday and Saturday nights in the bar, and then wondering where all your free money has gone. Drinking is usually a social thing for most of us, meaning that it’s the easiest way to see our friends and spend time together. Suggest other activities instead of drinking, such as having your friends over for a dinner at your home, going to an Escape Room or even to the cinema for an evening to give your bank account and liver a rest.
These are four changes you can make to help make 2018 your best year ever. What resolutions do you have in mind for the coming year? Let me know in the comments below