Despite the virus, I’m still going to create New Year’s resolutions for 2021. I expect that quarantine will continue for at least the first half of the year, which will keep limiting my activities, so I’m taking that into account and reducing the number of resolutions I make. As always, I don’t hold myself to these resolutions too seriously. In my mind, they’re just goals, so any progress I make is a step in the right direction!
1. Publish one blog post per week
I have so many ideas, so I’m not too worried about accomplishing this, but sometimes the whole process of blogging does get overwhelming. If I can actually stick with blogging and write 52 posts in 2021, that would be pretty cool.
2. Walk at least 5,000 steps a day and try to run a half marathon (again)
I walked 10,000 steps every day in September 2020, and it took me a little over two hours each day. It was pretty time-consuming and I just don’t always have two hours to walk, but I think 5,000 steps will be manageable. Completing a half marathon…third time’s a charm?? My registration for the 2020 Rock’n’Roll half marathon rolled over to 2021, so we’ll see if I motivate myself enough to train and if the event actually happens.
3. Put my phone away an hour before bed
I have a really hard time falling asleep unless I’m absolutely exhausted. I already wear blue light glasses, but I think it’s probably even better if I stop looking at my phone before trying to sleep. Instead, I’ll read, which brings me to my next goal.
4. Read 16 books
I used to be the biggest reader before I got into photography in high school. I’m starting to love reading again and just got a bunch of new books and joined Goodreads, so I’m excited to dive in! Check out my 2021 reading list.
5. Spend 10 minutes a day learning Spanish on Duolingo
Spanish would definitely come in handy in Los Angeles, and I want to expand my vocab beyond “carnitas por favor.”
6. Don’t buy any clothes
I bought a bunch of clothes at the beginning of quarantine, but I’ve been pretty much only wearing the same seven sweatshirts and sweatpants. I’ve found little to no reasons to get properly dressed and there’s nowhere to go, so I’m trying to see if I can completely avoid buying any clothes this year.
7. Limit my phone screen time to four hours a day.
With all these other goals, there’s no reason I need to be aimlessly scrolling on my phone for hours on end. In 2020, I was logging 4-6 hours on my phone per day, which is just a lot. I really want to try to keep my screen time under four hours daily and I put the screen time widget on the first page of apps on my phone.
I’m someone who likes to check things off a list and see the numbers, so I am using the Done app on my phone to track my progress. It costs like $9 in the App Store, but I bought it last year, and it has been absolutely worth it. I love the clean interface and how it lets you customize daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly goals. You can also set reminders and track habits you want to build and/or break. This is what mine looks like for 2021:
