Teja's New Year Resolutions 2015

The New Year's Eve is around the corner and with it the end of 2014. I have to say I was quite pleased with this year – no major health problems, no scary boyfriends, no clingy attention-seeking friends… yes, 2014 has been good to me.

I have learned a lot this year, and if I compare it to 2009, I truly believe I have grown spiritually, as corny as that sounds. I know more what I want, I have more realistic expectations of myself and what is more important, I know my limits. Seven years ago, this would have been impossible, I had absolutely no idea who I was or what I wanted in life and it was a really scary phase. Not a cool scary phase like Julia Roberts has in Eat Pray Love because you know that the movie has a happy ending and everything just works itself out because she’s Julia Roberts. This was the reality of my life with recession knocking on my door, with absolutely no guarantee of a happy ending. In real life, you just don’t know what’s coming next and that can be quite stressful.

That is why I have come up with a to-do list that would help me improve the quality of my life in 2015, so here it goes:

Eat less processed sugar – in the long run, I know that would be beneficial to my health but when I am stressed – I really REALLY crave chocolate. So, I am thinking of dropping the sugary milk chocolates and swapping them with dark high-quality ones. WIN!

Be less productive – um… I am probably the biggest multi-tasker there is. I am perfectly capable of standing by the stove, cooking something with my right hand, and checking my Instagram account with my left and pushing my grocery bag on the kitchen floor out of the way with my foot, so I don’t trip over it. This is going to be a hard one. I guess I will have to learn to do one thing at the time and just control my impulses. It’s going to be tricky when I’m stressed, that I know for sure…

Be kinder to myself – I still have problems accepting my ‘’flaws’’ because I grew up in a family where any kind of flaws were not looked kindly upon. So, every time I would make a mistake, even if it’s a minor one, I would worry and ponder and go over the event, over and over again, as if that would have changed it, going out of my way to make it better. This whole process has proved to be not only unproductive but also very stressful. So, in 2015, I promise to go easier on myself and on my mistakes because everybody makes them. I am imperfect and I have 7 billion imperfect people to share this world with.

Stop checking my emails/Instagram and/or Facebook account every five seconds – Seriously, I know that this is stupid because I am an adult and all, but when I am stressed and I am in an uncertain situation, I can’t stop checking as if this would give me control over things. It’s a weird impulse of mine. I was thinking of writing down things that bother me, maybe this would help…

Drink less coffee – hmmm… let’s go to the next item on my list…

Be thrifty and not buy any more clothes for the next 6 months - when I had a new closet installed this November, I literally had no idea just how much stuff I have. I grant you, some of it is vintage pieces from my mom, grandma and my aunt that I simply cannot let go and also can't wear every day, but... duuuuude! Way too much stuff. Therefore, I have decided to mix and match new and old, and also buy less, wear more:)

Go to bed at 11 pm – this goes hand in hand with me watching movies or reading in bed, when I should be sleeping. I mean I know that it’s good for me to get some shuteye before midnight, so, in 2015, I am going to be counting sheep at least once, maybe even twice a week before bedtime. What the heck, let’s go crazy.

Forgive and forget – This a process rather that a decision and that’s why I am having a hard time with it because it’s not like I can just shut it off. Zen Buddhism teaches us to live in the moment, but it’s a pretty challenging feat if you have something in your life reminding you of an unpleasant event in the past, triggering negative feelings that come with it. I mean, I’m not a machine! However, in 2015, I promise not to be so hard on myself.

Letting go – this is the juiciest of them all. I am a control freak. I want to be well prepared for anything. I want to have an answer to anything. I want to know exactly what my next step will be. But in real life, how can you be prepared for anything if you don’t exactly know what’s coming? Realistically speaking, some surprises are bound to come up that will ruin even the best laid plans. Therefore, I am going to try (the operative word being try) to let go of the control and see what happens. I am going to break my plans down into baby steps. I know that it’s going to be harder in stressful situations, but in the long run, it’s a good plan.

What are your New Year resolutions?

I hope you get everything you want and deserve in 2015J

Happy 2015!

Teja xoxox