I’m not really a new year’s resolution kind of girl. I push myself all year round, so there’s nothing novel about January 1 that pushes me to be inspired to use that date as the impetus for change.

That said, I cannot help but note the date as the perfect time to reflect, regroup and re-focus. Each year is filled with ‘those days’ that mark the passage of time in an unavoidable way. Birthdays. Holidays. Anniversaries. And, of course, January 1.

My plan for 2016 is almost identical to my plan for 2015. However, I now have the wisdom that comes from experience, and am going to make some modifications to this year’s plan, taking inspiration from those around me.

1. I was going to say that I want to continue to work to find more balance, but it’s almost 8 pm, and I’ve been here since 7am. Not doing so hot yet on the balance thing. The good news…there’s lots of room for improvement when it comes to me finding a better work/life balance. I’ll try harder tomorrow.

   

2. I am going to continue my quest to be better organized. I read a terrific article over new year’s about how to stay organized and focused at work. The writer recommended creating the daily agenda for the next day before you leave work. It gives you time to get everything in order in your head so that you can leave work, and truly leave it behind. It gives your brain time to ruminate on what’s coming the next day. Finally, it sets you up for a more orderly day because there is a plan to follow. I gave this a try on Sunday, and came into work today with my list waiting for me on my desk. Here’s the interesting thing: I found that as I got pulled in different directions throughout the day, every time I returned to my desk, I returned to the list and my intended game plan for the day. I was quickly able to re-group, shuffle the order based on new priorities, and actually kept on track. It was a complete shock. I reviewed the list at the end of the day, created a new list for tomorrow, and am going to give this my best effort in the hopes that it will help me be more organized.

   

3. I am going to work hard to be more spontaneous this year. I am 100% a work-a-holic, and as such, have a hard time doing things that pull me away from work. There’s a sense of satisfaction that comes from working hard at something, but every time I take the smallest step backwards and look at the bigger picture, I am filled with a small feeling of loss for all that I missed out on because I was working. I won’t be able to be more spontaneous if I can’t get a better life-work balance – none of this happens in a vacuum. I actually like how interconnected my goals are and hope it will help me stay on track. The first spontaneous thing I did this year was to sign up to run in a half marathon in May. Perhaps my next blog post should be about regretting being impulsive…

   

4. Finally, I am going to try to make sure I do one creative thing a day. Whether its writing a blog post, taking a picture for instagram or cooking dinner for my family, I have realized that I need to keep looking for creative outlets. There really is something to be said about the power of creating things – I miss this part of my life and hope 2016 is the year I can start to pay a little more attention to this.

   

Do you make New Year’s resolutions? If so, I would love to hear what you hope to achieve in twenty sixteen.