For me, January is always a time to reset my body and mind from the holidays.  I feel like starting at the end of October until the end of the year, there are just so many things going on that I feel very off with my priorities.  Life takes over and sometimes it just doesn’t go as planned.  I learned that that is okay as long as I get right back into the swing of things.  I have been having a lot of trouble sleeping at a descent time and waking up for work.  I feel like for LA, this is the gloomiest and coldest winter yet! I think I say this every winter.  I still prefer this weather over the blistering heat, but it does make it harder for me to get up every morning.  I decided that this year, I would set a short list of intentions each month that I want to incorporate into my life and hopefully become daily habits.  

Early to Bed, Early to Rise

This I feel has been a struggle all my life.  I’m a night owl! I feel most productive at night rather than in the morning.  But I think it is time for that to change.  With me starting work at 6:30am Monday to Thursday, I need to get the right amount of sleep to stay focused throughout the day.  The last couple of days, I have tried to sleep earlier, but I always find something else to get done!  But when I do get to bed at the intended time, I’m tossing and turning! Restless sleeps lead to late mornings in bed and I feel like I just wasted my mornings when I could be doing something more productive.  The last couple of weeks I’ve been sleeping much later than usual and I feel it has affected me negatively.  I tend to have more negative thoughts, thinking about worrisome things in my life, when I should be clear minded for bed.  Negative thoughts lead to a restless sleep for me and a restless sleep leads to an unfocused day.  It is important to get that much needed 6-8 hours of well rested sleep to function properly.  I feel the difference between a 4 hour sleep night and an 8 hour sleep night.  If I want to be a morning person, I must first be able to sleep early, and get the right amount of sleep to do so.

Unplug More Often

I am guilty of being glued to my electronics! My phone is my life; It is my own personal assistant.  I take all my photos on my phone and edit my photos on it as well.  But what I am trying to realize for myself is that it’s not the end of the world if I don’t answer a text or email right way.  If I am not on social media at all hours of the day, I won’t miss out on anything.  I want to be completely IN the real world and not just digitally there.  I want to physically talk to people more and just be able to do other things that do not require my phone; like art journaling, reading, and playing with my furbabies.  My fiancé and I are setting goals to be more outdoorsy and I think this is a great way to unplug from the world at a much longer length.  I’m so excited for more adventures and to be one with nature!

Positive Affirmations

I can be very hard on myself.  I think this is of the reasons why I’ve started so many blogs and failed.  I have all these ideas but when I put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard), I always find a reason to not post my content.  It’s not good enough, it’s not relevant, it’s overdone, and the list goes on!!!  Each night, before bed, I want to write down at least one good thing that happened that day.  I’m not sure if I’ll just write it down in my planner or if I will create an art journal, but it’s 7 days into January and I have yet to begin, so I better get started soon!! I’m hoping by giving myself positive affirmations, I can find more confidence in myself and in turn, continue on my road to self love.

What are your intentions for January? Do you have any goals you’d like to strive for on your road to self love?