2016 is dead as a door-nail…or at least it better be. The year has not been particularly kind to me, or celebrities, or anyone for that matter. Personally, I have been lazier than ever before, wasting away months without making any significant self-progress, trapped in a snare of crippling life decisions. And though an unexpected happiness came into my life, it left just as quickly, teaching me that when it rains, it pours. But as we all know, the reason we fall down is so that we can learn to pick ourselves up again.
This is my brief review of 2016, highlighting 3 things that went wrong, and 2 that went right, along with my resolution list for the new year. Hope you all enjoy, or at least take the time to reflect upon your own year, so that you can be your best in 2017.
Three things that were horrible in 2016
- Excuses
Excuses, excuses, excuses. I have an endless amount of them. You wanna hang out? I have an excuse. I should go to the gym? I got an excuse for that too. Shouldn’t I be working on my novel tonight? No, because I have an excuse for that. The sad thing about my excuses is that they aren’t real. It is a mental block I can’t seem to get past. I have big aspirations, and bigger dreams, yet I have an excuse for avoiding every step of the journey. This has to stop, and my solution begins with my next point…
- Motivation
My excuses stem from a fundamental lack of motivation. In the past few weeks I have been searching for the source of this problem. I think the answer lies somewhere in the middle of 1) my excuses ^^^, 2) being down on myself (which is notably easier than being encouraging of myself) and 3) from bad habits. Video games are fun, but they are time consuming and get you nowhere. It is time to put down the controller, and pick up a book and pen.
- Not trusting my heart
This one is a bit more complicated, and harder to write on paper. My heart has led me to many successes in my life, and I enjoy taking the influence of my decisions equally from my heart and my brain. This year, however, I did not listen to my heart, and the result of this was disappointment and indecisiveness. Time to get back in sync with myself, and to start trusting my gut again.
Two Things that Went Well
- Writing music
This was a big one for me. I have always tried to write music, but just couldn’t get myself to complete anything. I’ve always had moments of musical brilliance, but never jumped on them. Finally, this year I started to run with those ideas and sparks. The result of that? I have over a dozen songs written, which for me is a lot. Not only is the feeling liberating, but it has proven to be a fantastic coping method for some of life’s sadder moments.
- Self-confidence
I am not exactly sure when this happened, but suddenly I have started trusting in myself and my abilities. A new-found confidence emerged last year, one that let me write music, date seriously again and love life a little more. I started chasing sunsets every night for no other reason than I wanted to and it made me happy. Slowly, I have started taking myself off of other people’s time, and living by my own clock. The result has been mental bliss.
My Ten Resolutions for 2017
- Exercise – the one on everyone’s list. For me, exercise has always been a roller-coaster. But this year, I want it to be more of a NASCAR race: boring and stable but with a purpose. I don’t need to be ripped (I’m a writer for Chrissake), but that doesn’t mean I can’t have a healthy lifestyle.
- Read regularly – pretty straightforward. My reading list isn’t going to finish itself. Reading leads to better things, and I have to start doing it more.
- Study films (as opposed to just watching them) – as an aspiring film studies student, there is no time like the present to start doing this. I want to study films academically, and I watch films all the time anyway, so this seems like a natural step. Throw in a film studies textbook and I’m practically an undergrad again!
- Open myself up again – my first heartbreak left me a wreck for the years to follow. I can’t make that mistake again, especially with all the amazing people out there. The quickest road to recovery is getting back on that damn road.
- Record an album – now that my music is written, and I’ve accumulated the means of doing it, I will make my songs into a demo album. I love my music, so why not give other people the chance to love it too?
- Write, write, write – not just music this time. I want to continue writing short stories and to begin my long-awaited novel, but in order to do this, I have to start writing. Even blog posts like this are a great exercise to begin with.
- Reach out more – old friends, new friends, family, whoever. I am atrocious when it comes to staying in touch and setting up plans. While I do love my nights in, I want to start having a few more nights with the right people around me. Life’s too short to avoid those that matter.
- Procrastinate less – why was this only posted on January 5th as opposed to New Year’s Eve? You guessed it! Procrastination. It’s a hell of a drug, I would tell you give it a shot, but you’ll probably never get around to it.
- Less pessimism – seeing the negativity in everything is super easy, because a lot of things and people suck, it’s as easy as that. But seeing the good in something despite the negativity? I want a little more of that in my life.
- Less excuses – and now we have come full circle. I have an excuse for anything and everything, but I have to stop using them. What I don’t have an excuse for is why it has taken me so long to come to this realization. So, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be off trying to do something on this list. Cheers!