6 Goals I Will Achieve Before New Year’s Eve (And You Should Too)
Introduction
Only 95 days until New Year’s Day 2018! While you’re depressed to think about snow, I’m excited to start on my New Year’s Resolutions. Why not start now? It takes time to rewrite processes, retrain my body and mind, and make the appropriate environmental changes. While my life is excellent (and very blessed), here is my early list of resolutions that I will achieve by the start of an epic new year.
Physical Goal: Train my left side to handle daily activities more comfortably and efficiently.
Ironically, I’m complaining about favoring my right side (ie, hand and leg), and I’m a personal trainer. Your reply may be, “Why haven’t you fixed it already, Mr. Personal Trainer?” (which is a fair response). Like most people, though, even when you know what you need to do for yourself, you don’t necessarily do it. I preach perfect posture and a symmetrical approach to life, but at times I still succumb to laziness, watching a movie on the couch or holding my newborn son in the same arm, over and over and over again. Yes, I’m incredibly mindful of my physical approach, but I can’t help but lean to the right side of my body (which I’ve done for the last 38 years). As a result, I'm unable to handle daily movements with my left hand efficiently, such as brushing my teeth (try it and poke your eye out) and eating with a fork (if the food reaches my mouth 50% of the time, that’s success).
No more!!! The right side of my body needs a break! I’m determined to train the left side of my body to be more functional and will consider it as a first option for various movements!
2. Physical Goal: Perform 30 consecutive pullups.
Pull-ups are among the best (and most challenging) upper-body exercises. You utilize your lats, traps, shoulders, bis, tris, abs, and more! While I consistently perform 15-20 reps, I’ve never pushed for more…until now!
3. Nutrition Goal: Make 85% of my diet based on plant-based foods (limiting dairy, grains, meat, processed foods, etc.).
At one time, I said, “I will become vegan when I turn 50 to reduce the risk of injury and disease and to protect my health for the last 50 years of my life :).” Why not start now, though? If you’re like me, you grew up on meat, potatoes, pasta, and donuts (or something similar). Although you’ve gotten away with it until now, careless eating will catch up to you. I don’t want to wait around to see what the wheel of disease will serve me in a decade. While my diet is already far better than the general public's (and personal trainers'), that doesn’t mean it’s the perfect combination for me. An anti-inflammatory, nutrient-dense diet is undoubtedly the best way to keep me lean and fit as I describe my college years to my grandchildren. Of course, this approach requires significant changes in grain, dairy, alcohol, meat, refined sugar, and processed food intake… which I’m willing to do 85% of the way. My wife and I love to eat at restaurants and want to allow some flexibility for indulgences. I’ve already tested some plant combinations and found this is easier (and cheaper) than it sounds. Time for a bigger step!
4. Schedule Goal: Limit my administrative work to weekdays.
For the last 5 years, I completely stopped training and working on administrative tasks over the weekend. It’s incredible what a 2-day mental break makes! Luckily, I look forward to my job every day. So, it’s not easy to stop working. I would still work over the weekend if given the opportunity. Knowing myself, though, I realize how easy it is to burn out if I don’t pull myself away. Instead, I work 55-60 hours during the week and don’t think twice about it.
Now that my son, Preston, has been born, it’s time to rethink my approach. I realize that the perfect, efficient system that I created nearly 5 years ago doesn’t apply as well when I add a new time commitment (aka parenting). Recently, work has been spilling into my weekends, and I still approach Monday with a short list. With this new focus, I will analyze my time commitment to every facet of life, including my client schedule, workouts, morning routine, laundry, and every task that requires my attention. I will reshuffle these pieces to efficiently approach everything during the week (not on the weekend). What can I multitask? What isn’t a priority? What can I outsource? All questions that will undoubtedly place me closer to another effective schedule solution.
5. Lifestyle Goal: Arrive 3 minutes early.
To maximize my time, I usually fit 3 million tasks into a minute. With that said, I usually hate to arrive early and waste time waiting. The consequence: I’m always tiptoeing the line of being on time, and my stress levels increase tenfold while in a rush. The underlying goal in every line item above is related to the reduction of stress, and it’s no different here. If you’re constantly cutting it close, you’re most likely continually pushing the boundaries of safety and stress to arrive on time (e.g., speeding, cutting people off, running through stop signs).
Since the root of this behavior for me is the fear of wasting time, I will now keep a running task list of things I can achieve from my phone. Basically, I will always have access to fun business activities no matter where I go or how early I arrive—no time wasted!
6. Lifestyle Goal: Don’t check my phone while driving.
While I have minimized my phone time while driving, I still find myself fooling around with the GPS. Of course, when checking the GPS, I can often be distracted by a new text message, too. Ultimately, this behavior is risky and puts myself and everyone else on the road in danger (even if I only glance for 1 second). I will set the GPS and check my messages before I put the car in “Drive” or pull over if necessary.
What habits do you want to change? What goals will you achieve by New Year’s Eve?
About the Author: Michael Moody, Wedding Officiant
Michael Moody—author of the self-improvement book Redefine Yourself: The Simple Guide to Happiness and host of the “The Elements of Being” podcast—is an ordained minister serving Denver and other towns across Colorado. He is a 2023 WeddingWire Couples’ Choice Award winner in both Denver and Chicago (his eighth consecutive year), was named “Best Business of 2024 and 2025” by Three Best Rated, and earned “The Best Wedding Officiant in Commerce City, Colorado for 2024” from Quality Business Awards USA. Since 2012, he has officiated more than 300 weddings.
Specifically, Michael officiates wedding ceremonies in the Denver neighborhoods of LoDo, River North, Washington Park, Cherry Creek, City Park, Central Park, Capitol Hill, Cheesman Park, Park Hill, Highland, Platt Park, Lower Highlands, Sloan Lake as well as the zip codes 80215, 80214, 80204, 80203, 80205, 80207, 80218, 80219, 80222, 80223, 80224, 80246, 80238, 80221, 80022, 80230, 80231, 80202, 80209, 80247, and 80210. Michael also serves as an ordained minister in Golden, Boulder, Breckenridge, Frisco, Aspen, Vail, Estes Park, and more.
If your Denver neighborhood or Colorado town isn’t listed here, no worries! Please contact Michael to propose a wedding ceremony location in a different area!
