Starting over. Who doesn’t need a fresh start every now and then? Want to hear something crazy? I love Mondays. I absolutely love them! They are my favorite day of the week – every week. Most people hate Mondays. They dread the chaos at work, they loathe the lengthy to-do lists, they anxiously anticipate the inevitable drama. Not me. A long time ago I decided to view Mondays with a fresh set of eyes. Here is what I discovered, and how it changed my perspective!
There is something very special about a fresh start. It doesn’t matter if it’s the Monday of a new week, or the beginning of a new month, or January first of a brand new year. The old is gone, and the feeling of newness is on a horizon of possibilities.
What is a new month resolution?
Basically, a new month resolution is the monthly re-start you give yourself – just as you would a New Year’s resolution. It’s a commitment you make to yourself, for yourself. If you aren’t a fan of new year’s resolutions and think they don’t work….then new month resolutions might be the thing to try!
Resolutions (or commitments if you prefer) at the start of each month give you a fresh perspective, a focused goal, and a short-term challenge. Most commitments take 28 days to become a habit. By the time you reach the 28-day mark, you’re almost ready for a new goal and another fresh start. So…if you didn’t do so well with one resolution, you can pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start again next month.
If, however, you have made great strides in one area, you can continue and simply add another new goal to keep yourself moving toward the person you want to become!
What starting over resolutions could you focus on?
Starting fresh in any aspect of life can be both challenging and exciting. For empty-nesters, this is especially true. So many years have been spent caring for others and raising families, that now we have the time, we don’t know what our interests are, or what we want to do with ourselves. Here are a few new month resolutions for you to consider:
- Fitness: Start a walking routine, a weight lifting routine, or take a guided class
- Health: Determine to cut out alcohol, sweets, carbs or excess snacking.
- Declutter: Resolve to go through one drawer, one closet, one storage box, or one area of you space every day, or week.
- Get involved: Sign up to volunteer at a local senior living facility, teach a class at a local shelter, or offer help to a neighbor in your community.
- Offer a refreshing beverage: Carry a cooler of water bottles in your trunk and when you encounter a construction crew on a hot day, offer them a cool beverage.
- Donations: Make goody bags to keep in your car for when you encounter someone less fortunate than yourself – or pack shoeboxes for Samaritan’s Purse. It’s not just for Christmas, you know 🙂
- Practice Hospitality: This is one is easier than you think. Invite a neighbor, or group of neighbors to hang out at the park, by the fire pit, or take in a local sporting event. Imagine supporting a local high school football or basketball team, even if you don’t have a relative playing on the field.
- Write cards or letters: Hand written cards or letters are a dying art. You can’t imagine the gratitude you will get just for simply sending a card that says, “I’m thinking of you.”
How to track your progress?
Starting over with new month resolutions is easy and so much fun! You can choose to track your progress if your resolution is a daily one by simply marking the date on a calendar. If your resolution is a weekly one, set a reminder on your phone and be sure to mark your progress there. Or there are hundreds of free apps you can use to do habit tracking. If you have a smart watch, many of them are comparable and can be checked off from the watch face.
What can you expect from these starting over moments?
How do new month resolutions benefit empty nesters or those working toward a fresh start? For us, these resolutions give us something to focus on work toward.
Our apartment complex has a full service gym as part of our rental agreement. When the weather is cold or nasty, we hit the gym. When the weather is nice, we have a beautiful walking trail at a park next door. Because of this, we have increased our fitness and improved our health, simply because we resolved to walk every day for 30 minutes.
We have also increased our circle of friends by simply inviting people to the fire pit, or accepting invitations to the grill pavilion. In addition, we have taken in the sights and attractions of our local area simply because we determined two things: 1) we would try one new restaurant each week, and 2) we would visit one new local place / attraction / shop each week.
They say that we only regret what we didn’t do. Why not consider those options and work them into new month resolutions. Starting over doesn’t only happen once a year. They can happen every month – or every week if you want them to.
Looking for fresh inspiration?
Here are some books we recommend – they are sure to get you thinking!
The Miracle Morning, by Hal Elrod
Atomic Habits, by James Clear
Finish What You Start, by Nick Trenton
