How to Start the New Year Off Right

I hope you had a wonderful and relaxing holiday!

Perhaps you're still relaxing. Wonderful! It's important to rest and recharge our batteries.

However...

Already people are saying, "Well figure it out next week!" or, "Let's work on this in the New Year!" or, "I'll have so and so call you next week."

The interesting thing is that January 1st is on Thursday and so many people are already lying to themselves telling themselves that this year will be different.

THIS January 1st everything is going to change.

-"I'm going to start eating better."

-"I'm going to start exercising more."

-"I'm going to finally make my health and fitness the priority it deserves to be in 2015 and lose the weight!"

These are the types of promises we make to ourselves year after year.

I'm sorry to be the Grinch but this is absolutely delusional.

If the only thing changing is the date, we're fooling ourselves. That means we're going to rely on willpower...yet again.

Deep down we all know willpower only goes so far. If you're not learning skills, learning how to change your relationship with food and changing the way you think and react to food what makes you think this coming year will be any different?

If you're not developing a new mindset along with new habits and behaviors what makes you think "grinding it out" or "buckling down" is going to yield a different result?

If you're hoping / planning to lose weight in 2015, I highly recommend you read this post: "Why is sticking to a diet so hard". It will help you a lot.

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But I don't want to just preach in this post on what you need to do in order to lose weight. I want to teach as well.

So, I'm going to share with you a practice I started several years ago that has helped me hit the ground running come the "New Year".

Let's get to it...

In Malcolm Gladwell's book the Tipping Point he brought to light the idea of the broken window theory (although it's been around since the early '80's). The broken window theory is fascinating, and I believe it applies so much to our health and fitness.

It suggests that people on streets with lots of broken windows, graffiti, garbage, etc., are more likely to throw trash on the street, graffiti the walls, and overall have much less respect for the property on that street than if it were gleaming.

Think about it this way...

When you're in a sparkling bathroom you're way more likely to keep it that way, right?

When former Mayor Giuliani first become mayor of New York City, he went after the small infringements like meter skipping for subways, graffiti, and getting rid of the guys that washed car windows whether you asked them to or not.

He felt that if you attack the small nuances, the serious ones like assault, rape and murder would diminish.

He was right.

I've applied this concept to my life.

I find that:

When my office is messy, I'm not nearly as productive, organized and on point.

When my kitchen is messy, I tend to order in food more.

When my laundry is piling up, I skip the gym because I don't have any clothes to wear.

When I don't have healthy food stocked up, I'm way more likely to eat unhealthy.

I try very hard to not let the small things build up.

Seems like common sense but it's certainly not common practice, and it can make a big difference.

Like ----> spending just 5 minutes every night cleaning and organizing, dealing with unread and undone emails/tasks, and doing laundry every week, as opposed to letting it build up.

THE PROBLEM WITH LETTING THINGS BUILD UP...

Is that they become DAUNTING! As tempting as it is to say, "Alright, I'll do everything all at once...", it's much more effective and way less daunting to do a little every day.

I find that when I stay on top of these small but impactful tasks, it allows me to do everything better.

So, if you're unsure of what to do the rest of this week, why not spend some time cleaning and organizing and "do everything all at once" this week so come the New Year you can just do a little every day.

-Are there any lingering tasks that you kept putting off this year?

-Is there physical clutter (messy desk, closet, kitchen, etc.)?

-Do you have online clutter (unread emails, invites, etc.,)?

Dealing with these small things can make a big difference. It allows us to start the year off fresh with a clear head.

I hope you decide to try it out. It has helped me tremendously. And before you discount the simplicity of it ...TRY IT! :) Then see how you feel.

I also hope you have a happy New Year! It's a privilege to write this blog for you.

-Adam