Weekly Inspiration: 5 Ways to Start the New Year Right!

Happy New Year!

As I mentioned in my last Weekly Inspiration post, Happy (Almost) New Year!, I love the start of a new year and the feeling of fresh possibilities it brings. In that post (at the link), I outline how I start my own new year, by reviewing last year, revisiting my lifetime goals, and setting new (or continuing) objectives and targets for the new year. I'm just about done with that process and immersed myself in data this week (yay!) and will share the highlights of my progress (or lack thereof) in 2019 and my goals for 2020 later this week. That post includes links to step-by-step instructions on how you, too, can set achievable goals or change habits (baby steps!) in the new year.

But, I recognize that everyone is different, and the way that I start off a new year isn't for everyone. In this post, I am sharing four additional great ideas for starting your new year off right, whatever that means for you! Take a look at these ideas for kicking off the new year and choose what is most enticing or meaningful to you:

Happiness Calendar for January
Yesterday, I came across this Happiness Calendar on Bonnie's Books blog and instantly loved it! It's a calendar for this first month of the year with a simple activity on each day to boost your happiness. They are all things that even those with chronic illness can do (or easily modify for your own needs) that will help to boost your happiness in ways that will carry over to the rest of the new year! For instance, January 1 was "Find 3 good things to look forward to this year," and January 2 was "Make time to do something kind for yourself." Check out the full calendar at the link and bookmark it or print it for yourself. There is plenty of inspiration here to kick your year off well!

6 Steps to Write Your 2020
Chronic illness blogger Invisibly Me has a wonderful new year post called 6 Steps to Write Your 2020. While she includes some similar steps to my own process of reviewing the past year and planning for the new year, this post has some unique ideas and inspiration to help you start your new year off in a positive way - "new year, new perspective," as she says. She's got some great tips specifically for those with chronic illness on how to make this a good year for you.

How Will You Show Yourself Some Surefire Compassion in the New Year?
Another chronic illness blogger, Crafts, Chronic Illness, and Adulting has this inspirational post on How Will You Show Yourself Some Surefire Compassion in the New Year? that we can all use! What better way to start the new year than by being kinder to yourself and caring for yourself? Check out her post for some great ideas and inspiration.

All It Takes Is Intention and Extreme Permissiveness
Julie, aka the ME/CFS Self-Help Guru, re-shared a great new year's post from last year (originally an article she wrote for ProHealth) with an entirely different approach to the new year, All It Takes Is Intention and Extreme Permissiveness. In it, she outlines a gentler way to look at the new year, with self-care the uppermost priority and a focus on listening to your body. Boy, do I need this one!

How do YOU plan to start the new year? Do you have your own planning process or way to refocus on your priorities? Please share in the comments!

Happy New Year to all! Here's to a healthy and happy 2020 for us all.