I'm looking for suggestions for daily and weekly routines I should try to incorporate into my life over the next year.
For the last few years I've set new year's resolutions that were along the lines of "lose 50 pounds, go to the gym everyday and get perfect uni marks." Amazingly enough, these have not stuck. This year I'm trying a new approach and setting mini-resolutions. So, on January 1, I took a photo, which is a habit I'm trying to start (I want an album with the whole year in it). On January 2, I took a photo, and I also abstained from chocolate for a whole day. On January 3, I did the first two things, and I also made my bed (for the first time in *mumble mumble* number of months). Today, I added a weekly spin class to the routine.
So far, I've come up with about a month's worth of mini-resolutions. Some of it's stuff like "remember to floss" and "drink some damn water instead of all that Pepsi Max." I've also listed some other hopefully life-improving things, like buying more flowers, and cooking new recipes, and typewriting letters to friends on a weekly basis. Now I'm starting to run out of ideas.
What are some simple, not-too-time-consuming daily/weekly routines I could add? I have some overall goals, like eating better, and exercising more, which I'm trying to break into manageable chunks. I'm also looking for little things, like remembering to wear earrings (I wind up having to re-pierce my ears on a more regular basis than I would like), or putting all loose change in my piggy bank instead of letting it roll around in the bottom of all my handbags. Or cumulative things like "put an extra $5 toward *some amazing trip/experience/automated-foot-rubbing-machine everyone should have*."
If it matters - I'm female, twenties, no children, student, near Sydney Australia.
(Disclaimer: I have read threads like
this thread and
this one. The are good, but a lot of the advice leans more toward ethical stuff (don't be a jerk, give people the benefit of the doubt) which is valuable but not what I'm looking for, and things like "save money", which I already do. If I missed a good thread though, please let me know. Also I'm not sure if this is too chatfiltery, and if so, apologies in advance. I'm new here!)
- Don't buy anything ready made. Get into a routine of making what you eat yourself.
- Buy seasonal; an extension of this is buy products that are both local and do not use carbon intensive farming techniques.
- Start a recipe blog. Cook from it at least x times a week.
If you want a good way to save money - whether you put it towards something ethical or not - then choose a note or coin and ensure that every time you get one you don't spend it, but put it in a savings pot. For example, a AUS$5 note. Or if that is too much, a $2 coin.
My thing is to try and learn a new language or skill each year. I've learnt Spanish, Moroccan cooking, magic and got a motorbike licence. I can't profess to being an expert or keeping things up, but each time I've been rewarded tangentially - finding new friends or a new perspective on things.
Go a month or a fortnight getting up really early, and go out and do something. Walk the city. Take photos. Go for a swim. Learn to rollerblade. It's hard doing a long project, and it's natural to want a rest, so have a defined start and end date so you don't wear yourself out.
posted by MuffinMan at 6:23 AM on January 4, 2011 [4 favorites]