By Victoria Q

To begin an entirely new year, I’ve outlined my intentions for the year that I want to focus on. I don’t see them as my yearly goals because I tend to get overwhelmed if I can’t achieve everything on the list. This affects me negatively, so I prefer to look at them as things I want to focus on instead of goals I must achieve.

Focus On My Career Transition

I’ve particularly mentioned in my previous post that I want to make a career transition to be a freelance writer. I first found my passion in writing by joining WordPress as a hobby to keep a record of the recipes I’ve tried/created.

After joining and posting for only a month, I stopped being active in my blog due to work. One day, I’ve got people liking my posts, and I got inspired by that. Since then, I got back to my blog and posted regularly.

The more I wrote, the more I found my love in writing. I was literally addicted to writing. I love writing about self-help, especially in health and fitness, money-saving and recipes creation. I also love sharing my life stories with others, knowing that there must be someone who went through the same thing as me. I want to support and comfort them through my post.

This year I’m planning to take real actions to grow my career in writing. I know I’ll get a lot of “No” at the beginning, but I’m willing to try. There must be a “Yes” somewhere as long as I don’t give up and keep going forward.

If you haven’t already read my previous post on “Recap of 2021: Review”, you may read it here:

https://searchlifestyles.com/2021/12/31/recap-of-2021-review/

Spend Money Wisely

I have a fixed amount that I put into saving every month such as a retirement plan, build wealth, house fund, travel fund, or goal saving.

Lately, I want to buy a new laptop, so I’ve been saving up crazily and trying to save every penny I can. I would refrain myself buying things that aren’t necessary, and it can be something simple like fruits or a chair.

I know the fruits or chair will definitely bring value into my life, but I’m too focused on saving up for the new laptop. This stressed me out sometimes. So, this year I want to spend money on things that will add value to my life while trying to save up.

Read Books

I’ve been busy and too focused on writing and making a career transition that I’m being harsh on myself. I love reading books, especially romance books. Recently I told myself not to waste my time reading fiction books. Instead, read articles that can bring ideas to my writing or think of a way to build my career.

I want to get back to reading books and aim to read a book each month. This isn’t an impressive amount, but I need to focus on my career transition while cutting myself some slack. So, 1 book per month is good enough.

Follow a Workout Routine

I love how workouts do to my body. I feel energized and strong after a workout. I’m also happy to see some changes in my body after lifting weight for a period of time, and that really motivates me. I love weight lifting. Every time I increase weight, I feel proud and that gives me the confidence I can’t find somewhere else.

I used to do workouts for an hour or two about 6-7 days each week. Yes! This is how much I love workout. I’ve been busy with writing recently, so I couldn’t stick to any workout anymore. Sometimes I do a workout for only 5 minutes, and sometimes I skip the workout at all.

This year, I want to get back to a workout routine. I might not be able to perform an hour workout, but I want to build a habit of doing workouts regularly for at least 20 minutes each day. I’m not aiming at losing weight or trying to build abs or trying to get a round butt. I’m focusing on making my body strong and healthy here.

Stick to a Healthy Diet

Sticking to a healthy diet isn’t easy. It required a high level of self-discipline, especially when you get back from a holiday or festive season. My body has been in a bad condition because I’ve eaten a lot of craps since Halloween.

I had way too many fried foods, cakes, cookies, and sweet beverages. It is very obvious that my body and health were affected by the unhealthy diet. I feel lethargic most of the time, and acne popped out on my face.

So, I decided to get back on a healthy diet and stick with it. I’m going to take small steps each time to get back on it because I know this is the best for me. If I make a huge swap at once, it’ll only make things worst, and I might overeat one day.

Have More Fun

As we get older, life gets more and more serious. We tend to focus on our career, family, and always look for a way to find more and more money that we eventually ignore what we actually love doing, which is fun.

This is a good time to stop and look back at what we missed doing. Think of us when we’re young, and we’re happy with having only the basic needs. Nothing is holding us back from having fun like catching butterflies around the park, building a sandcastle on the beachside, eating our favourite food without worrying, and taking a nap when we’re tired.

Take Care of My Skin

I’m on my journey to become a vegan. But, I’m sure some of my skincare and makeup products sitting in my bedroom are not fully cruelty-free and vegan. I’ve been spending most of my time working, studying and not paying attention to my diet and skincare routine. This caused me to have a bad skin condition. I also didn’t really take the time to explore and experiment with vegan products.

I want to take this opportunity to rediscover better products and routines for my skin. This can be difficult and time-taking but having smooth and clear skin help boost my self-esteem.

Take Things Less Serious

Often, I have a tendency to take life too seriously that leaving me suffocated. Of course, there are times when life can be very serious. But other times, it’s important to just relax and enjoy life itself.

I want to take this opportunity to forgive people, practice daily gratitude, live in the present and enjoy every moment of life.

Be Consistent

I often hear people say that consistency leads one to be successful at accomplishing their goals. For example, when a person workout regularly, they usually become fitter. When a student studies every day, they’ll eventually get smarter.

I’m planning on being consistent in the choice I make every day. Doing one thing every single day to get closer to my goal, and I believe it’ll eventually lead to some kind of success.

Learn Something New

People said life is a long-term learning process that’ll never end. Whether you’re learning more about your job, getting to know more about a new friend, or doing more research about a new profession.

As for me, I want to learn more about a new writing niche and skill. There were plenty of niches in the market out there, and I don’t want to limit myself to only one or two. And I know there’s no better time than this year to learn something new.

Write More

Last but not least, one great intention for 2022 is to share my ideas with the world. Although I’m already doing it, this year I want to share more ideas, from helping people to find answers to pressing matters to searching for solutions that could increase convenience for others.

I feel connected when sharing my ideas with the world. I get to support others when they need answers or solutions for their problem or just to feel less lonely, and maybe one of my posts could do the job. This is the greatest outcome for a writer.

What’re your intentions for this year?