Halfway through the year, I like to do a New Year’s Resolution Evaluation. Checking in, celebrating successes, acknowledging missteps, and making changes where necessary are the keys to meeting big goals. Here’s how to evaluate your resolutions at the six-month mark…
Making New Year’s resolutions is one of my favorite parts of the new year. It’s the perfect time to evaluate your life and make changes to bad habits and improve on good ones.
But we all know that those resolutions get harder and harder to keep after the initial motivation and momentum wane. Instead of just abandoning our goals, why not re-evaluate them?
That’s what this post is about. I’ll share the ways that I’ve succeeded and failed at my resolutions, and the changes I’ll be making, and I hope you’ll do the same to your own goals.
Evaluating My Word of the Year: Savor
Along with doing a New Year’s resolution evaluation, I also wanted to look at the word I chose to define my year. It was the starting point for all of my goals. The words is savor.
This was a good word to choose because it is a constant reminder of where I am struggling the most in my life. I am always rushing, always trying to squeeze in one more thing.
Having savor on my mind each and every day has given me the chance to stop and think if what I am doing is in line with my goals and who I want to be.
At this point, I would say that I have been successful about 50% of the time in savoring my life and my goals. I still rush, but not continually. I still put productivity first, just not every day.
I’m hoping with further changes to my goals and habits (as I’ll mention in this post), I’ll be better able to savor the rest of 2019, and beyond.
How well did I savor my family?
My first goal was to savor my family. To connect and spend more quality time with my kids and husband, and to make my home a more welcoming and joyful place.
My resolution evaluation made me see that this has been one of my more successful goals. I have tried to limit interruptions to our time together. I have put down to-do lists to throw a football. I homeschool my older children and include the younger ones when I can.
But there has been one glaring failure in this New Year’s resolution. My work is still taking up too much of my time. My daughter mentioned this the other day and it brought home where I was falling short.
It’s for this reason that I’ve decided to make a change to my work life. While I love writing this blog, the amount of time spent writing, editing, researching, posting to social media, and all the other behind-the-scenes stuff adds up to less time with my family.
So, I’ve decided to cut down to just two posts a week for now. This small decrease can add hours to my day and lower my stress. You guys won’t mind, right?
As for home, I have not yet started my project of crocheting a throw for the couch. But I have started burning candles and playing music to create a more enjoyable atmosphere that we can all appreciate.
How well did I savor my faith?
My second goal was to savor my faith. I wanted to read my Bible and study it. I wanted to pray, but listen as much as I spoke. I wanted to be less legalistic and pursue a closer relationship with God.
My New Year’s resolution evaluation showed me where I created better habits, but also where I need to continue to work.
I am reading the Bible in chronological order this year and enjoying the chance to see things in this sequence for the first time. A few chapters in the morning or before bed isn’t too overwhelming. I also follow the current She Reads Truth community Bible studies, which are great and I really recommend.
I took part in Bible Study Fellowship as I did last year, but I don’t feel I did as well here. I missed a lot of them, and because it was virtual and in the middle of the school day, I was not truly focused. When I start again in September, I hope that I’ll have a better time slot so that I can give it my full attention.
My prayer life has become more intimate and connected as I sit in silence and listen. This is still hard, but like meditation, I know that time and practice will train me to hear what I need to hear.
How well did I savor my health?
My third goal was to savor my health. I wanted to eat better, exercise more, and take care of my skin and eyes.
This New Year’s resolution evaluation showed me some great successes and failures.
I do eat better—most of the time. As in, I’ll eat well until I get the craving for sugar, and then I turn into the cookie monster. So, that still needs work. But otherwise, I am eating a more balanced diet.
As for my exercise goal, I now run six days a week and workout for five. This might seem a little much, but I have an ulterior motive. I suffer from frequent stomach aches and exercise is one of the few things that quells them. So, this goal serves me in more ways than one.
As for my skin, I am still woefully lazy about sunscreen and exfoliation. I do oil-cleanse though, which makes my skin feel smooth and moist (without expensive products or chemicals).
I take vitamins daily and change my contacts regularly, which used to be something I forgot more than I remembered. My eye doctor will be so proud.
How well did I savor my hobbies and passions?
My last goal was to savor my passions and hobbies. I wanted to spend more time reading, writing, crocheting, playing an instrument, and learning a language. If you’re thinking that’s a lot, you’re right.
I evaluated these New Year’s resolutions and realized I had a classic case of big eyes, small stomach—or in this case, small free time.
I have been writing a lot for my blog, but not pursuing the book I wanted to write. This is another reason I am going to slow down in my blogging. I’ll be able to devote more time to the posts I do write and the book I want to work on.
As for my musical goal, I tuned my violin and got the sheet music—then did nothing. There just wasn’t time to play without interruption from my curious children. I’m not going to abandon this part of my resolution, but I’m also not going to stress about the fact that this year might not be the year I play again.
I have practiced my Chinese, but haphazardly. I will need to set up a dedicated time to study if I want to work my way toward fluency.
Reading is by far the most successful aspect of this goal. I have savored my reading more than I have in years. As of right now, I have read 37 books. But the number isn’t important. What matters is that I’ve gotten in touch with my first love again.
My New Year’s Resolution Evaluation Conclusions…
So. All this to say that after evaluating my New Year’s resolutions and my progress so far, I feel that I am on target for most of them. However, there are a few things that need to be changed for me to reach my goals.
- Cut down on the frequency of my blog posts to redirect my time and energy to book writing and spending time with my family
- Set aside time to study Chinese
- Make applying sunscreen a habit rather than an infrequent occurrence
- Find alone time to practice my violin
I also need to remember that goals are wonderful, but relationships are better. None of my goals should ever interfere with my time with God and the people who mean the most to me.
I hope that reading this post gives you the impetus to evaluate your own New Year’s resolutions, and hopefully pushes you a little closer to accomplishing your goals. Good luck!
Have you done a New Year’s resolution evaluation? Which ones have you been succeeding at? Which ones are in need of reassessment? I’d love to hear about your goals and journey in the comments below!
Interested in more posts about goal setting and resolutions? Check out these helpful posts:
New Year’s Resolutions: How to Make ’em and Not Break ’em
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