Saturday, January 2, 2016

My 2016 New Year's Resolutions

Another year has come and gone, and here I am once again putting together a list of things I hope to accomplish in the new year. I am always wary when it comes to setting new year's resolutions, due to the fact that I have only ever truly followed through with one of them, and that was to stop drinking soda (4 years and still going strong). Now though, looking back on resolutions I have set in previous years, I think my lack of motivation when it comes to sticking with these resolutions, mostly stems from the fact that I used to set such unrealistic expectations... Such as the typical- 'Exercising everyday for at least THREE HOURS.' Therefore, this year I have decided to set more realistic resolutions, that will hopefully help to make me a better person not just physically, but also emotionally.


1. DRINK MORE WATER. Although I drink a decent amount of water in a day, I still have room for improvement. The recommended amount you are supposed to drink daily is 64oz. and right now I typically only fill up my 32oz. water bottle once a day. I am hoping that by the end of the year I will regularly be filling up my water bottle at least three times a day. Not only would this be beneficial for my kidneys (I drink way too much sweet tea), but also for my skin. I can always tell such a big difference in the way my skin looks and feels when I've drank a lot of water.


2. MAINTAIN MY HONORS GPA. I know that most people say that your GPA in college doesn't matter that much- That you should just worry about passing your classes, but I don't want to just pass. I want to excel. I have always been incredibly academically driven, and after being honors for the past two semesters, I have become addicted to the idea of graduating summa cum laude. That little sticker they put on your degree saying honors, and the extra tassels you get to wear across the stage on the day of your graduation may not mean that much to some, but to me they are a mark of validation for all of the hard work that I am putting into my schoolwork.


3. PUT MORE EFFORT INTO BEING SOCIAL. Although I want to do well in school, I would also like to try harder at making friends. For the past few semesters I have been so caught up in school work that I haven't taken the time to slow down, and get to know any of the other people in my classes. Although college is centered around the academic aspect, the social aspect can't be completely disregarded; therefore, I have set the goal to at least TRY to get to know the people in my classes. Maybe I'll even join a club.


4. WRITE MORE. Recently I read a quote that really resonated with me, and it was, "Stop wanting to be a writer more than you want to write." My dream is to one day publish a book that people all over the world love, but I think I have been so caught up in the dream of becoming a writer that I have completely forgotten to actually write. For so long I have thought that nothing was worth writing, unless it was as fantastical as books such as the Harry Potter series; and, although I do love (and by love I mean am obsessed with) the HP books I have recently realized that it is perfectly okay to write stories about ordinary things. I have been reading The Opposite of Loneliness by Marina Keegan, which is absolutely fantastic, and I have realized that although her stories aren't about far away places with magical beings, they are still just as wonderful; therefore, I am going to try writing more stories about the ordinary things in life that I know plenty about.


5. FOCUS MORE ON THE NOW. I am very much into planning out every aspect of my life. In fact, I pretty much have the next five years of my life mapped out. This can be great at times, such as when people ask me what I plan on doing after college- It's always nice to have a solid answer to questions like those, but sometimes I get so caught up in future plans that I forgot to make plans for the present. 


6. RUN A MARATHON. My little brother and I have been talking for quite awhile now about running a marathon, and I think that 2016 would be the perfect year to actually follow through with this. Not only would this be good for my health, but I also think that training with my brother would be hilarious. He is by far one of the funniest people that I know, and neither one of us have ever run a marathon so there wouldn't be any pressure to finish with a certain time. Plus, it's a great excuse to go somewhere fun like Disneyland (their Star Wars marathon could be interesting)!


I'm not sure that I will truly follow through with any of these, but I hope that I do. None of them are outlandish... I am definitely capable of following through with all of them, and I think that I would be much better off this time, next year, if I did. Have you set any resolutions for 2016? If so, I would love to hear what they are in the comment section below! It's always so interesting to hear what others hope the new year has in store for them.

P.S. Happy new year! I hope you enjoyed hearing what my resolutions are, as well as seeing some random pictures of mine from 2015. See you next time!

-Melissa P. Cooper

3 comments:

  1. Love this! You can do anything you set your mind to.

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  2. These are amazizng, wishing you all the best of luck!

    Parie xx
    classandglitter.com

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