1. Be Grateful
If you don’t already thank people when they do something nice for you, start taking the time to notice just how many people help you over the course of a day. This applies on a large scale as well. If you consider all the people who have helped you in your life (parents, teachers, coaches, etc.), you might feel a bit better about humanity and stay humble as well.
I've all ready begun to keep to this one....I've started my 52 Blessings Journal/Gratitude Journal. To add to this, I'm going to be sure that a sincere "Thank You" comes out of my mouth at least once a day to someone.
2.
Perform One Unselfish Act Regularly
That is, something for others from which you don’t benefit directly. It could be as small as carrying someone’s groceries, as generous as helping someone whose car is broken down on the highway, or as practical as teaching a friend something you know a lot about.
I'd like to think that I do this anyway. I volunteer for Scouts, both Cub and Daisy, but I'm also going to make an effort to go beyond this and add to it.
3. Spend Time With Family
Realize your family’s importance and pay special attention to those who might have been neglected lately. Visit the grandparents who don’t get out much or the cousin you used to be so close to.
You also might want to consider touching base with some old friends you’ve lost contact with. In every instance, you will be reminded of certain aspects of yourself that you forgot about and get back in touch with your roots.
I spend loads of time with my family here at home, so I'm going to change this to mean spending time with my extended family. I'm going to try to make it to every single family event that goes on this year......Barring any major/serious issues, so be sure that I get invites to everything!!
4. Change One Negative Thing About Yourself
Be it jealousy, constant stress, misanthropy, always staying in, lying, or what have you, pick something that exudes negative energy and phase it out. Adapt to change and you will probably cause some pre-emptive elimination of future resentment (e.g., you might not take it personally when your local hockey team relocates, or when your old mechanic’s replacement makes a mistake on your car). Fixing the negative will increase your self-esteem, so believe in yourself.
My one negative thing actually causes a dominoe effect on everything else negative in my life...I'm going to try to be less stressed. Being stress causes me to fight with Pat and snap for no reason. I don't like that and I'm making an effort to change that.
5.
Take Up a New Hobby
Pick something you’ve always wanted to do but have never followed through on — photography, skydiving, baking, whatever. Replace some of the time you spend
watching bad television with your new hobby and you’ll feel productive and fulfilled. You can even take it a step further and learn about one of your loved ones’ interests.
My new hobbies include photography and I'm going to attempt to start crocheting, scrapbooking and reading again. I don't watch a whole lot of T.V. anyway, so replacing the bad television is no issue for me. Just something to keep me busy and maybe de-stress me.
6.
Learn to Relax
Let that vacation time mellowness carry over into the New Year. If you get too stressed at work, give yourself an hour of silence each day, before or after your workday.
When you get home, don’t turn on the disturbing news programs or check your stocks. Find something that relaxes you — a game of solitaire, a puzzle, someone to talk to on the phone,
a pet — and focus on it for an hour each day. Believe it or not, you’ll start to relax in the long run.
I'm going to take a lesson from great women. Since Pat causes me so much stress (LOL....no, but really, he does), instead of getting mad at him and yelling, I need to learn to take it somewhere else. It's not worth the stress.
7. Listen More
Prior to listening, though, you will likely have to face the reality that you talk too much. Ask yourself: Am I just waiting to talk when others are speaking? If so, treat yourself to some humble pie and make a point to listen actively to others. Practice your listening skills with your spouse. Remember: “If he who listens, listens fully, then he who listens becomes he who understands.”
I do a whole bunch of listening. But, I will try to listen more...
My project tonight was to start cleaning up my desk area/area behind the couch. I'm going to take the microwave stand beside the desk and making it kind of my scrapbooking/creative area. I wish I had a whole room to dedicate to that space, but I don't, so this area will have to do. And then, after I get the Christmas stuff moved back downstairs, I'm going to have the treadmill moved upstairs and then I will use it more often. I hate having it in the basement. I never use it!
