How to Have a Productive Year?

As we approach the end of 2019 and the holiday vibes setting in, I am sure many of us are hopeful and optimistic about 2020. We always step into a New Year thinking, “This will be the year I attain greatness,” and we work towards our goals the entire year. We write out our New Year resolutions, make promises for a better year, to try new things and that’s how the year ends. More often than not, by the end of the year we realize it’s really not working out the way we thought it would.

We are drunk on the thought that we could have done better, achieved a little bit more or should have taken a little more risks. But New Year is all about hopes and promises.

Ever since I was a young girl, I loved writing. I started this thing, almost recently, perhaps a five to six years back. Every year, during the last few days of December, I would think about the whole year and assess it. I would jot down all I had done the entire year and what I had learned from it.

This has really proven to be a productive technique over the years that I had put it into practice. It really helped me to reflect back on how I performed the whole year spiritually and emotionally.

We have all experienced a life with assessments. We have been assessed during our academic years and even in our work life we have been evaluated for our performance the entire year. So why shouldn’t we take into account, our progress emotionally and spiritually.?

I have always been someone who has given great value to emotional and spiritual well-being. I have read countless books on spiritual enlightenment and I have to vouch for it. It has really helped me grow and evolve as a human being. So evaluating my progress as an individual and a human being was always of the utmost priority to me.

But the question remains. How can we possibly define a year as productive?

Is it really about achieving some targets? Or is it about achieving awards and recognition? Or is it travelling more often? Or is it about learning something new? To be honest you can’t really define a year as productive. But you can give a definition to it. You have to define what you think is a productive year.

Set Standards. Set Goals. Set targets.

Learn. Achieve. Excel.

So growing up, I wrote about the things I wanted to have, things I wanted to learn and things I wanted to achieve. As I finished assessing my whole year, the next thing I did was list out my New Year Resolutions. The list can be endless. And it can be anything. And during the year I would cross off things from the list that I had already done.

Life can change any minute. So it’s advisable to be flexible with your resolutions. It is absolutely okay if you were not able to do complete some of them. Otherwise how else will you make use of the next year, right? Keep in mind that you are doing the best you can and you don’t necessarily have to be harsh on yourself.

With all these in mind, I would like to share my top six tips of having a productive year because that’s what we are here for right?

1. One day at a time

It seems almost overwhelming to think about the whole year and the plans you have for it. Sometimes it helps to break it down so it seems achievable. Take it “one day at a time”. Plan your day. Do what needs to be done. Be done with it. It is always easy to set daily goals which will all come together to achieve one big goal. There! One New Year Resolution done. 59 more to go!

That’s how you can achieve all your yearly goals and it never hurts to take a step back and assess your achievements.

2. Feel. Write.

It is essential to keep an account of our feelings as and when we progress through the year. Keep a journal. It never hurts to have colorful pens to decorate your journal and have fun with it. Writing how you feel about your day will ultimately help you to understand what went wrong or how you could have done better. I have always been supportive of writing about whatever comes to mind. Write. Write. Write. Even if it doesn’t make sense it’s still your masterpiece.

3. Travel plans

It would be such a waste if you didn’t plan out a holiday during the year to reconnect with your spirit. I cannot emphasize how important it is to have travel plans in your resolution list. It can be anywhere. It can be anytime during the year. You don’t have to decide the destination right before the New Year starts but list out your options. List all the places you would like to visit. Choose the ones you can make it happen in the New Year. Work towards it.

Go have fun. Be one with the nature. Listen to those birds sing. Watch that sunrise.

Travel definitely makes you feel a sense of accomplishment and it is so much more worth than anything else. Be it on the mountains or the seas. Be sure to plan a getaway just to check it off your list! And, hey! You will never know what the universe might send your way. Maybe a life changing realization just comes to you right in the middle of the nature.

4. Do something you have never done before.

Have you wondered what it would feel like to sing in front of a crowd? Or learn a new instrument? Or go on that expensive trip? In our daily course of life, it is of utmost importance to take risks and to step out of our comfort zone. Doing something you have never done before is a learning process. It is obvious that we will be afraid or procrastinate but once you actually step out of comfort zone and just take a leap of faith, it can open new doors. It will teach you something. I cannot guarantee what exactly you will learn. Each of us experiences life differently and hence our lessons come in different forms.

Keeping just one thing on your list that you never would have done is challenging as well as fun. If you are able to do it, you will feel like you have achieved something and it will thus add in to your productive year.

5. Be in the now

“The power for creating a better future is contained in the present moment. You create a good future by creating a good present”- Eckhart Tolle

Were you ever lost in the thought of a past mistake? Constantly reminding yourself of the hurt or how you were not good enough? Or were you ever worried about the future? Lost in the thought of what happens next. Being sane is all that counts. There will be bad days. There will be difficult days. Being in the present moment will not only keep you sane but will help you to focus. It’s easier said than done of course. But practicing it every day will definitely help you to stop overthinking about the future or the past.

6. Keep a reading list

Reading list is essential. Gaining knowledge from books feels more accomplished than anything else. If you are a book worm I bet you have already started on the list. Plan out the number of books you want to read this New Year. Strive to achieve that goal.

Go ahead. Have a wonderful new year. I hope you attain the greatness you thought you would achieve.