As 2020 winds down, many of us are looking forward to welcoming a brand-new year, with all the possibilities it might hold. It’s only natural to have high hopes for 2021, especially given all the challenges, unrest and uncertainties that characterized 2020. How do the most successful people set goals, and what are some beneficial New Year’s resolutions you’ll want to stay with all year long?
How to Set Resolutions That Stick
While most people habitually make New Year’s resolutions, it’s especially valuable for people in recovery to develop healthy goal-setting strategies. To create effective New Year’s resolutions you’ll be able to keep, remember the acronym SMART, which is short for specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound.
- Specific: Creating vague or undefined goals is setting yourself up for failure. To set definitive resolutions, detail what you want to accomplish and why this goal is meaningful to you.
- Measurable: Setting parameters around your goal will help you track your progress. For example, saying something like “I will save more money in 2021” doesn’t give you any yardstick to compare yourself to. Instead, you could set a goal like “Every month, I’ll put aside $500 for my retirement fund.”
- Achievable: Ensure your goals are something you can realistically attain. In the previous example, setting aside $500 a month might not be within your reach if you need to pay off debt and are already living from paycheck to paycheck.
- Relevant: It’s more challenging to work toward a goal that doesn’t feel worthwhile.
- Time-bound: Give yourself a deadline to make resolutions feel more solid. You can create a mix of short-term and long-term goals, so you have a few things you can accomplish relatively quickly and others that might take you a couple of months to work toward.
3 New Year’s Resolutions for Recovering Addicts
How can you stay inspired to maintain your sobriety for the 365 days of 2021 and far beyond? Consider these ideas.
1. Start a Recovery Journal
Making a journal is an excellent way to help you work through challenging emotions and record your most private feelings. You can also use your journal entries to track the progress you’ve made toward your New Year’s resolutions.
2. Pay It Forward
If you’re in addiction recovery, think about all the love, help and support you’ve received along your journey. Resolve to pay it forward by doing good deeds for others, whether you choose to volunteer in your community or serve as a sponsor for someone else in recovery.
3. Find New Hobbies
If you’re working to preserve your sobriety, it’s essential to find rewarding ways to fill your time that don’t revolve around drugs and alcohol. Stay busy and mentally sharp by taking online classes that could help you accomplish your professional goals, or learn a skill like baking or photography. Once you master one hobby, move on to another. Eventually, you’ll be proficient in several talents.
Start Fresh in 2021
If you’ve been relying on drugs and alcohol to help you get through the difficulties of 2020, make 2021 the year you resolve to get clean and sober. New Found Life is a compassionate recovery community in Long Beach, CA. When you’re ready to seek accredited addiction treatment, we’re only a phone call away.