New Year, New You?

I know I am not the only one that is amazed at the fact that yet another year is wrapping itself up in a few weeks. I would say that I just can't believe it, but in reality I know that time is precious and it passes by quickly whether we want it to or not.
People always use idea of the new year as a 'fresh start'. Whether their goals are to go the gym more frequently, study harder, be nicer, limit spending, or one of the other many other options--they all share the commonality that they will somehow better themselves/their lives in one way or another.
Some people have the motivation and dedication that allows them to stick to their New Year Plan, while some people go strong for a few weeks, and others never make it past the drawing board.
A few days ago I was reading through a questionnaire and I came across the question:

'If you could be anyone, who would you be?'
After thinking about it the answer I came up with was 'A better version of myself.'

Of course we could say that we want to be Bill Gates or Rihanna, but when you really think about it why would you want to be something/someone that you're not. Although I absolutely love Rihanna, I am not her and she is not me, and it's that way for a reason. So as long as I have to be Kaila, I want to be the best version of Kaila that I can be.
Obviously, this is much easier said than done. I can say that I am going to try to use a more cheerful tone of voice when answering  the phone, or that I am going to be more positive about what is going on in my life. But as we all know it is really hard to break habits, and our personalities are made up of habits.
For instance, loud talkers are so used to talking loud that they often don't even realize that they are talking at such a high volume. Talking loud is second nature to them (yes, I have been told I am a loud talker...). When you have been living with your habits for so long it is hard to break them or create new ones, which is often why people don't stick to their new years resolutions. It is just so easy to go back to the old way of doing things, and many times people slip back into the old way of doing things before they even realize it.
Regardless, I think setting goals is a great idea. Remember last year when I used to set monthly goals and blog about them and then reflect on them at the end of the month? Those were fun.. I should get back to that. Especially since I know there is so much to improve on. There is always room for improvement! That's one of the many great things about life. No matter what there is always something to work towards or to become better at.

So I guess I will set some goals for myself for this new year, new chapter, 'fresh start'...

My first goal is to become more involved in community service. Right now I am a volunteer at PADS..which I wrote about in my last blog 'Involve Yourself'. Since graduatin with a degree in Sociology and interning at a non-profit organization I have realized how important it is to give back to your community. I know that I have the time to give back to those in need, I just need to find a couple more organizations that I want to invest my time and heart into (& trust me..there are plenty of organizations to choose from!).

My second goal is to build stronger bonds with people I see regularly. Right now I work as a receptionist at a title company. Often times, the same attorneys and clients come in and out of the office each week. The ones that I see most frequently I converse with without a problem. But, there are others that I also see pretty regularly yet we don't seem to approach each other on a first name basis...when really we should. Of course sometimes there isn't time to sit and chat but I think it is important to connect with people on a deeper level than just the 'Good Morning' & 'Have a nice day' basis, especially when you see them so often. So whether it be the joyful mailman, the tired UPS guy, or a stressed out attorney--I am going to try my best to learn a little bit more about them and perhaps become a more familiar smile when they walk through the door.

My third (& last one--for now) goal is to count my blessings. It's easy for us to forget how blessed we are when we are angry at the slow driver in front of us or we are stressed out about finances. My plan for this new year is to remind myself of the good. When something is going wrong or I am sad or upset about something for longer than necessary, I am going to try to remind myself that I have so many things to be happy about. In order to do this I am going to start writing down the things I am thankful for (you know--kind of like when your newsfeed gets flooded with 'Im thankful for...' during the month of November?! No worries, I will keep it off of your timeline and in my journal--with maybe a few appearances in my blog, haha).

I am going to try my best to transform these three goals into habits during 2014. I can't promise that I will succeed, but I am going to try. These are only a few small goals, & there is of course much more that I hope to accomplish in 2014...but I am going to save that for a future blog post.

Take some time to think about your own goals and what you want to change about your habits.

Here's to hoping I make it past the drawing board,
xoxox- Kaila