A one size fits all New Year's resolution for 2023
Posted on 4th January 2023 at 07:31
First things first, a very happy – and healthy – 2023, may it be a great year for you!
Having tried to inject a little common sense into the festive season during December (!), we thought we’d continue this theme into the bright, shiny New Year. And, there are no prizes for guessing what we’re turning our attention to this week. New Year’s resolutions. Or, as we usually refer to them, the dreaded New Year’s resolutions.
Why dreaded you may ask?
Well, for the simple reason they’re usually fueled by the potentially explosive combination of peer pressure – "I’ve made New Year’s resolutions to lose 3 stone / run the London Marathon / double my salary / fill in the blank(s), what about you?" – and industrial amounts of food and alcohol. Not a good recipe for a successful outcome. It’s little wonder that few New Year’s resolutions make it past the first week in January, let alone have a successful or happy ending…
So, this week, we’re going to suggest a completely different approach to the year ahead. Not only is it much simpler but can be used by everyone. Even better, it’s fueled by those inexhaustible power supplies we all have access to – otherwise known as intuition and inspiration (!) – rather than relying on gritted teeth and sheer willpower.
Can you guess what this near miraculous approach is?
It’s letting being happy be the guide – and focus – of our lives.
Now if that sounds rather “purple and panpipes, man” we’re not talking about that sort of happiness…
Nor about all “the stuff” advertisers would have us believe creates happiness. True, the latest gizmo may bring a brief surge of happiness to begin with, but it never lasts. All too soon we’re looking for the next thing. And, before we know it, we’re on the modern hamster wheel of consumerism.
Or the tales the entertainment industry spins of what happiness is.
And definitely not the latest “magic pill” from the pharmaceutical industry.
Not even the latest Government initiative. And contrary to what many believe, the Government isn’t responsible for our happiness either.
No, we’re talking about true happiness. The happiness which comes from inside rather than outside.
And, yes, we know the Little Monster in your head has probably become very vocal at point. Trying to convince you that it’s only external stuff which matters and how on earth could you possibly live your day to day life – and do everything that needs doing – using happiness as your guide?
Well the good news is that, as so often, the Little Monster in your Head is completely mistaken. The two things aren’t mutually exclusive, quite the opposite. Focusing on being happy AND seeing the positive in every situation and person, regardless of what else may be happening in your life – and around you – changes your life radically. Not only does it allow your life to flow more easily, but you quickly realise that you really are in control of your life, rather than being continually at the whim of external events – and those around us.
Then, having destroyed that particular myth, another quickly raises its head. That we have no idea what makes us truly happy. Well, once again, the complete opposite is true. Each of us know, in our heart of hearts, what makes us truly happy. Makes our hearts sing. The things we love to do – and could happily do for hours without a second thought – the places we love to be, the people we love to spend time with.
Once again, it’s the Little Monster in our Heads who stops us in our tracks. Coming up with 101 reasons why whatever it is – and it’ll be completely different for each of us – is impossible / impractical / too time consuming / expensive / fill in the blank(s). And so we grind to halt, with happiness remaining just out of reach.
The question is whether we’re brave enough to ignore the little Naysayer in our heads and follow our own internal compass. The only one which points us towards what truly makes us happy and fulfilled. And, here’s the big secret. It’s going to be something really simple. Easy to overlook or take for granted. Even better, it doesn’t need to take up huge amounts of our time, just be something we love to do. Why? Because the happiness and positive energy it generates quickly ripples out into the rest of our lives. Makes it much easier to see the positive in whatever may be happening, the “good” and “bad.”
As we said at the beginning, it’s simple, powerful and one size fits all. Even better, it lasts for a lifetime rather than just a few days at the beginning of another year.
What other New Year’s resolutions can do that?
As always, the choice is yours.
Photograph by unknown author
P.S. And it’s the first time we’ve done a P.S. (!).
Happiness is a topic we write about regularly in this blog. So, if you need a little more help in this direction (!), below are links to some of the other posts we’ve written about being happy.
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