A New Year's Resolution You Will WANT to Keep

By now, you likely know that most New Year’s Resolutions don’t last more than a few weeks. But here’s one that you will want to keep, and that will markedly change your life

This year, pay attention to how you feel.

That’s it.

Simply take the time to notice the emotions you feel as you go through your day.

You see, from the time we are young, we are told to stuff our emotions. If we cry, we are told to “shake it off.” If we are angry, we are told to calm down. Even as adults, we are told to look on the bright side. If we complain, our well-meaning friends say things like, “You can’t think that way. Look on the bright side. Don’t feel sad.”

Culturally, this stuffing-of-emotions is so pervasive that most of us stop noticing when certain people and activities evoke negative emotions. As a result, we end up doing things we dislike with people who are not particularly inspiring.

However, when we notice that we feel good around certain people and while engaging in certain activities and lousy around others, we have important information we can use to make our lives better. While we might not be able to eliminate all negative interactions, we can start making choices that allow us to feel good more of the time.

When feeling good is your priority, you find ways to make that happen.

Does this sound overly simplified? Give it a try. Resolve to check in with yourself about how you are feeling periodically throughout the day and notice who or what feels good. Set a reminder on your phone, if you have to. I promise that within the first three weeks, you will have experienced at least one breakthrough... and that this is a New Year’s Resolution you will WANT to keep all year round.