Now that the holiday season is over, you’re probably battling
sluggishness and a mild case of depression. You’re back at work,
you ‘re totally broke after Christmas shopping, and you’re still
nursing a hangover from your most epic New Year’s Eve yet.
But life goes on, as it does at the beginning of every year, and
you want to start this one on a good note. Here’s how to break out
of the holiday mode and start 2013 with some good decisions:
Take down your Christmas decorations
Don’t be one of those people who keeps up a Christmas tree
year-round because she can’t be bothered to take it down. By the
time February rolls around, that just looks depressing. You’ll have
an easier time getting back into a routine and moving on with your
goals once your wreaths and plastic poinsettias are put away.
Download new music
No matter how much you love Mariah Carey’s Christmas album,
you’ve got to accept that the season’s over and it’s time to move
on. If you’re sick of looping all your favourites from last year,
go to your favourite music aggregator to discover some new
artistes. Upload a new album onto your iPod so that you’ll have
something to anticipate listening to during your morning commute.
The sooner those new songs replace the Christmas songs playing in
your head, the sooner you’ll start to feel like your regular self
again.
Buy a cute new planner
One of the best parts about the New Year is being able to fill
in a new planner. Oh sure, most of you guys have completely
migrated to Google Calendar and phone organisers, but don’t
discount the simple joy of cracking open a lovely new Moleskine to
get the year going.
Cut one bad thing from 2012 out of your
life
First, make a list of everything that went well in 2012. Then,
make another one filled with things that went badly. Was it your
fault? Was there something you could have done? If it had to do
with a bad habit, such as laziness, smoking, a toxic relationship,
or binge-eating, then cut it out of your life. You don’t have to
cut all your bad habits at once. Prioritise the worst parts and get
rid of them first. Once you cut the worst thing out of your life,
the rest will be easier to deal with.
It’s marriage proposal season! So stop compulsively
checking Facebook
If your Facebook feeds are anything like ours, you probably woke
up to a stream of marriage proposal announcements and new
relationship statuses on New Year’s Day. At the end of the day,
we’re happy for all of our friends that found happiness, but let’s
face it: it’s always a little depressing to see such cute and happy
announcements when you’re still single. Don’t start off 2013
feeling down – quit Facebook until Valentine’s Day and keep in mind
that every year scrolling through engagement announcements is one
year closer to when you’ll be announcing yours.
Get up 20 minutes earlier than usual
The first week of work after the holidays is always the worst.
We can guarantee that you’ll either oversleep, or you’ll spend your
first day surfing celebrity gossip sites instead of getting
anything down. As painful as it sounds, we’d recommend getting out
of bed earlier so that you’ll have time to warm up. Make yourself a
cup of coffee, check Facebook BEFORE getting into the office, and
thank whatever deity you believe in for another year on earth.
Eat breakfast every day
Just because you ate a whole leg of ham, and drank a barrel full
of pink champagne, over the holidays doesn’t mean you should starve
yourself in an effort to shed the weight. If you’re already annoyed
about going back to work, don’t make it worse by letting hunger
pangs affect your mood ‘round noon. Kick off 2013 with the
most important meal of the day so that you’re at least physically
ready to handle the tasks ahead of you
Create a health or fitness plan
Every additional year is one year closer to old age. To delay
the process for as long as possible, take diet and fitness
seriously. First, set some kind of goal – be it to eat
home-cooked food five days a week, join a gym, or run a marathon.
Then find an accountability group or a partner to keep you on
track.
Discover one new place at least once a
month
Just because you’ve lived in the same place your whole life
doesn’t mean you know it from top to bottom. Instead of going to
the same old bars, coffee shops, and bookstores you frequented in
2012, make it a point to try something new in your town at least
once a month for all of 2013 – be it checking out a museum,
braving a rollercoaster, or eating in an ethnic neighbourhood that
you normally don’t visit. That way, you’ll have some stories from
2013 even if the year doesn’t bring you a new boyfriend, job, or
flat.
Have something to look forward to
Look forward to something, even if it’s your next vacation. And
in the meantime, create events that you can look forward to. Make
plans with your friends a couple of weeks in advance. Plan out
weeks where you will treat yourself to a haircut or a massage. Make
a conscious effort to think of one fun thing you will do tomorrow
before going to bed tonight. It doesn’t need to be complicated, it
can be as simple as trying out the new seasonal drinks at Starbucks
with your colleagues.
