Why do I need to write "Things I need to do for 2022" instead of "Things you need to do for 2022". Well, I am writing this first blog of mine for this year in such manner because I want to be reminded of the fact that I really need to take good care of myself first so that I could take good care of others.
Speaking of year 2022, cheers to us because we made it this far! I know, by far, this era ain't the hardest for the human race, but let us admit it, we had been holding ourselves out to keep ourselves strong despite of what we are all going through.
Now, here is my favorite part, for the past for days, I had been asking myself, what are the things that I need to do to become better. I know I can make gradual changes of my life in a day to day basis but it is really different when the atmosphere is festive. I am not sure though if this is just innate for mankind or we got used to our norms and customs, like our teachers in grade school or high school would ask us to share our New Year's Resolution. Anyhow, let us get started!
Exercise daily. I always here that 30 minutes of cardio like walking helps boost our immune system. I tend to give this advise to my friends, but I do not do it. I know I could say a lot of excuses, but my excuses would burn my calories or should I say excess fat.
To keep on track with this resolution of mine, I have decided to use a planner so that I could monitor on what days I had been exercising. I might also need to record my weight. Oh gosh, I know this is embarrassing for myself, but keeping a healthy lifestyle is just very important especially that I am not getting younger and we are still in the middle of the pandemic.
Read any book except fictitious novel for an hour. It helps stimulate my imagination and make my writings better. I guess!
I find this kind of hard because I had always been slumped with a lot of work in our office. I think a lot of you could relate to me on this. And I guess it is also important to read books not just to pass time but to also learn.
If learning is impossible because books are hard to find in your space of that you do not wish to buy books, like I do because we had a myriad of books at home already, I could just download e-books online. I might also listen to audiobooks while in transit. I also listen to Youtube educational material online.
Drink lots of water. It will help my parched throat under the scorching weather. Like, seriously, I just do not understand the weather. It suddenly rains after a very fine morning, or the scorching heat of the sun causes my head to ache after buying meals for my lunch during my break.
Dress freely! I should not let others dictate on how I should show who I am are with my clothes. I could just be laid back, preppy or whatever I am feeling as of the moment. I would just need to avoid experiencing wardrobe malfunction though.
As of the moment, I had been enjoying wearing smart casual attires because it is just so convenient. Neutral colors do not always sore my eyes. Of course, I wear clothes that should be pleasing to me.
Cut off toxic people in my life. It is time to say goodbye to all those who backstab me, tick me off, or just want to use me for their own benefit.
One thing I learned from a friend way back 2021, if someone is a friend of my boyfriend, it does not mean I need to befriend that person.
Having friends is like having clothes, the smaller amount you have, the easier it is for you to find the clothes that you like. I also need to unfriend a couple of people on my Facebook because my newsfeed has been very saturated with posts of a lot of people that I barely even know.
Learn to save up, invest in financial institutions, and invest in myself. Last year, I have decided to apply for a saving/investment/insurance plan. I think that is one of the best decisions that I ever made.
Other than those that I mentioned, I must also invest in this blog of mine as the posts that I made and will be making in the near future would be very essential tool for me to assess myself if I learned from my mistakes and mistakes of others too.
Cut off my milk tea intake. Before the year ended, I decided to have a savings account. I got to save Php 50,000.00 worth of bonuses. I have thought to myself that I should have started sooner, but anyway, better late than never.
I usually spent a lot of my money eating in cafes, ordering milk teas, and on impulsive purchases. Perhaps by adjusting my budget, or should I say creating a budget plan, it would help me become wiser.
Learn new hobbies like learning new languages, musical instruments, and reading books. I think I would skip on learning musical instruments because I really do not know how to read notes, how much more on learning the cords.
Anyway, I decided to compensate my lack of knowledge in playing musical instruments by learning another language which is French. My French is far from great, but at least I am trying to catch up. It is also helpful for me that I installed DUOLINGO because somehow there is an app that is helping me with my pace.
I find individual activities important because for me, I think, we usually grow when we do things alone and without the company of others.
Lastly, I should not be bothered by the small or little things. Last year, my anxiety took a toll. From now on, no matter how hard it may seem, I need to focus on the lighter things and things are essential. Problems are inevitable same with reality. If I could not change something and that is probably because that is reality.
So, those are the things I will be focusing on 2022. It might not be that concrete but at least I have an idea on how I should face it.
How about you? What are your takeaways from 2021 and the corresponding resolutions that you want to make?
Love,
Johanna Gail
Photos were taken from pixabay.com.
Gail loves to work as an art teacher during summer -- sharing her expertise in art to young minds. She also loves to tutor students and make learning worthwhile. On the other hand, she works as a young leader in various organizations such as the Young Centrists Union. She also volunteers in one of the chapters of JCI or Junior Chamber International.