Every new year, you feel a ray of hope. Perhaps this year, you can start your life all over again, reinventing yourself. Perhaps this year, you’ll become the person you’ve always wanted to be.
While one obvious way of making this shift from bad to good or from good to great is to set fresh resolutions and make bold plans, this alone may not be enough. For your resolutions to stick and your plans to work, you may have to get out of your own way.
Here are three examples of common mistakes that sabotage New Year resolutions and how to fix them:
Mistake #1: You Never Ask for Help
If you are stuck with something, then you might need help to move beyond this limitation. Sometimes, you need more than willpower or the right information to change your life for the better. Although you may be an independent and self-reliant person most of the time, you may need to ask for help under certain circumstances. In truth, we all need to ask for help sometimes and get over feeling needy.
If, for example, substance addiction is holding you back, the start of a new year would be a good time to put it behind you. Unfortunately, breaking free from an addiction is not as simple as deciding to change because the physical and mental health risks of substance use aren’t only restricted to its active use. Withdrawal symptoms and health risks usually occur once you quit.
Many people with the strongest intentions can’t quit substance use because of acute withdrawal symptoms. They need the support of healthcare staff at an addiction treatment center to walk them through a structured treatment program. The distressing physical, mental, and emotional effects of substance use after deciding to go cold turkey makes it difficult for them to quit on their own.
Often it’s comforting to stay at a residential facility in another city close to home. This gives you the privacy and psychological space you need to heal but still allows you to stay in touch with people close to you if you need to reach out. For instance, if you live in Santa Monica, you could go to a facility like Laguna Treatment Center which is only a few hours away.
Mistake #2: You’re Wiped Out by New Year’s Day
Although the holidays are fun, a time to gather with family and friends for a festive time, you will be tempted by cookies, cakes, candy, and alcoholic beverages. All these holiday fares will leave you feeling enervated by New Year’s Day.
Fortunately, you can quickly recover from overindulgence during the holidays with the right blend of spices and herbs. They will help you quickly recover from feeling sluggish, empowering you to start your resolutions on the first day of 2021 with enthusiasm.
Mistake # 3: You Hang Out With Negative Influencers
Breaking free from intimate relationships or long-term friendships is never easy, but it may be necessary if you have outgrown these relationships and they are holding you back.
For instance, if you’ve quit drinking, then you might suddenly discover that you have very little in common with your drinking buddies when you’re sober. Or, for instance, if you’re determined to develop a positive attitude, you may need to distance yourself from negative relatives and friends who will scoff at your intention to change for the better.
Overcome Obstacles That Hold You Back
It takes more than impressive resolutions and meticulous plans to make a change for the better. Review any obstacles that could hold you back in the coming year and find practical ways to overcome them. You will need to break away from the gravitational pull of the year behind you to reinvent yourself.
