2014 Organization

Happy 2014 everyone! As January is my organization resolution month, I'm all about planning ahead before school starts up next week. Here are some of my favorite desktop calendars, list papers and personal agendas to keep organized.

Sugar Paper / Tiffany & Co.  / Mrs. John L. Strong  / Sugar Paper

Kate Spade / Sugar Paper / J.Crew x Delfonics / J.Crew x Knock Knock / Kate Spade / Sugar Paper 

 Sugar Paper / Kate Spade / Hermès / Louis Vuitton / Bon Journee

And here's an older post featuring my back to school planning tips if you're headed back to finish up a semester or start a new quarter!

xoxo

14 Truths for 2014

Happy New Year! There really is no better feeling than a fresh start. That being said, 2014 has some big shoes to fill. 2013 was a truly wonderful year!

Here are 14 truths to inspire you to be your best in 2014:

1. "Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right." -Henry Ford

2. "Tell the truth, or someone will tell it for you." -Stephanie Klein

3. "The best thing to hold onto in life is each other." -Audrey Hepburn

4. "We cannot become who we want to be by remaining what we are." -Max DePree

5. "Life is 10% of what happens to me and 90% how I react to it." -John Maxwell

6. "The secret of getting ahead is getting started." -Agatha Christie

7. "Be kind for everyone is fighting a hard battle." -Aristotle

8. "There is no elevator to success, you have to take the stairs." -Unknown

9. "In the end, we only regret the chances we didn't take." -Unknown

10. "Stay hungry. Stay foolish." -Steve Jobs

11. "It isn't what we say or think that defines us. It's what we do." -Jane Austen

12. "Life has been immeasurably better since I have been forced to stop taking it so seriously." -Hunter S. Thompson

13. "There's a power in looking silly and not caring that you do." -Amy Poehler 

14. "You can do anything, but not anything." -David Allen

Happy New Year!

xoxo

Resolutions for A New Year: 2014

Happy New Year's Eve!

In the words of Oprah, "Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right."

Yesterday, I posted about writing New Year's resolutions, and today I've decided to post what my actual resolutions are. I can honestly say I've been really struggling to come up with twelve different resolutions this year. My resolutions for 2013 were the best I had ever written, and they helped me have an incredible year. So as I was writing, I felt a little bit of pressure to do even better.

However, with a little inspiration from some friends, family and much internet research (true story), I think I've come up with some goals I want to achieve this year. Here they are:

January: Organization

I wanted to start out with a pretty easy and definitely attainable resolution this year: managing my room. When I'm at home, I am a complete neat freak, but ever since starting college, I find myself in such a rush to just get to class that I often leave a heap of clothes I thought about wearing on my bed or a slew make up scattered all over my dresser. So, this year I resolve to spend fifteen minutes every day (or night) cleaning up and choosing an outfit for the next day. This will really streamline my morning and possibly even give me enough time to grab a cup of coffee before class (yum!).

February: Love

This year's love resolution is going to be a little different than previous (read: single) years. In fact, I find coming up with a relationship resolution really challenging because I am in such a happy relationship. But everyone (read: I) always has some things to work on. Over the last few weeks, I've felt the reality of being in a long distance relationship set in (it's hard!). In 2014, I resolve to slow down and enjoy every moment of being together. This resolution isn't as specific as others I've made. However, it addresses one of the biggest challenges long distance relationships pose: impending separation. Focusing on the present together, rather than future times apart is a much better outlook.   

March: Health

I have a really weak immune system and am definitely prone to getting sick. However, there are a lot of things I could be doing to strengthen my immune system, namely cutting out soda. Therefore, I resolve to stop drinking Diet Coke (ugh) this year and drink water instead. Sugar (and artificial sweeteners) lowers your immune system defenses significantly. And, artificial sweeteners paired with carbonation majorly zap energy and can also cause breakouts (artificial sugar = inflammatory, yikes!). I know I will look and feel so much better by making this simple switch!

April: Travel

I'll be studying abroad in Italy this spring and am really excited about a new experience. However, I'm also a little nervous. I've always really struggled with accents and the idea of speaking a new language in a new country is admittedly daunting. I want to face this fear, so I resolve to throw myself into speaking Italian before and during my abroad program, regardless of how bad (or good!) my accent is. Ciao!

May: Friendship

I am so lucky that I have made a lot of great friends in 2013. I really want these friendships to last. However, many of my friends any I are studying abroad in different countries this year or go to different schools. In 2014, I resolve to check in with my friends at least weekly via email, Facebook, text message or some other form of social media. In the past, I have not done a great job of keeping in touch with my friends. Therefore, setting a weekly time (TBD based on my class schedule) to catch up on my friends' lives and share my life with them will make the distance easier and the friendship stronger.

June: Academics

I know June is a strange month to make an academic resolution. However, I will be taking classes over the summer at my university. Anyway, I have noticed a trend in my study habits the last few quarters: my productivity really declines after dinner. I guess I just get really tired and distracted when the sun starts going down! Therefore, I resolve to get the majority of my weekly work done before dinner and spend evenings working on long term assignments or relaxing.

July: Fitness

I used to work out all the time. Then sophomore fall happened. Between classes and joining a sorority and friends, there were a million things I'd rather be doing than spending time on the elliptical. And by this point, I've accepted that I walk around campus a lot and I usually take the stairs, so I'm not going to resolve to work out more. Instead, I resolve to get 7-8 hours of sleep per night. I can't emphasize enough how important sleep is for physical and mental fitness. In fact, I wrote extensively about it here and here if you want to read more.

August: Reflect

I do reflect on my past, present and future a lot. I think reflection is vital to leading a fulfilling life and has contributed to 2013 being such a great year. I really want to keep my life moving in a positive direction without totally driving myself crazy (i.e. making more to-do/goal lists). So I reflected a little more and came up with this: I resolve to unplug for 30 minutes per day (and during mealtimes). Technology is a huge distraction from being in the present moment, and taking a break (meaning no checking text messages or emails) is so important for creativity and general sanity.

September: Write

Over the summer, I was on an ultra-intense schedule where I was weeks ahead on writing posts for my blog because I was traveling so much. When school started that slipped, and I was barely keeping up with my daily posts and sometimes had to skip because of unforseen life events. So in 2014, I resolve to get ahead on my posts by writing a few extras every weekend. This will majorly reduce stress!

October: Relax

Carving out daily time to relax alone or with friends is really important. During midterms and finals and basically the entire academic term, it is really difficult to find time to just kick back on a daily basis. I skipped way too many meals with friends because I wanted to study a little more or go to a meeting for an extra curricular, both of which are important but can be stressful. Therefore, I resolve to do one intentional, completely non-academic thing every day with my friends or on my own. And note: talking to people in line while waiting for coffee and studying in a group doesn't count.

November: Read

As an English major, I read a lot. However, I don't always get to read for pleasure, especially at school. Therefore, I resolve to make time to read for pleasure on the weekends (and hopefully during the week to) during the school year. This is such a good way to unwind before bed or after class and also makes for better writing. Plus, I have a whole bunch of books I got for Christmas that I can't want to read.

December: Give

Philanthropy has always been really important to my family. More than just giving money, but actually doing something. I found that in high school, there were so many opportunities to volunteer for really worthy causes, but in college it can be a little more difficult to find time to give back. This year, I resolve to get involved with volunteer opportunities at my school beyond just what is required for an organization (club, sorority, etc). I always feel so great when I am able to give my time and energy to an important cause. I've been blessed with so many incredible things (both tangible and intangible) in my life, and hope that some small action I take will make someone else's life a little easier.

Cheers to the happiest New Year yet!

xoxo

Writing New Year's Resolutions

2014 is upon us! Hooray!

I really love New Year. More than the countdown or the parties or the sparkly dresses, I love New Year because it is a fresh start. And being the Type A crazy person that I am, one of my favorite things to do every year is to make a list of New Year's resolutions. 

And let me tell you, I really do follow through on these. I think it's because I've developed my own way of writing resolutions that doesn't make them seem life-altering or overwhelmingly difficult. I'm not at all into the "new year, new me" mantra. I think of it as a "better year, better me." New Year isn't meant for radically changing yourself. Rather, it is an opportunity to improve who you are. And with the right resolutions, you can do great things.

Here's what I think about when writing resolutions.
(And yes, writing them down or typing them out is key to keeping them!)

Number of Resolutions

For the past couple of years, I've written 12 resolutions- one assigned to every month. I find that easing myself into a change every month keeps me motivated and also makes one resolution sink and become a habit in before I start focusing on another.

Categorizing

Each resolution I make deals with a different aspect of my life. For example, I make one resolution for my health, another for academics, one for friendships, etc. This reminds me to maintain balance- no one aspect of my life is more important than another. This also makes keeping resolutions easier (I know I wouldn't be able to eat super healthy, work out and cut out Diet Coke all at the same time!).

Specificity
For resolutions to stick, they have to be specific. Is there a book you can't finish but feel like you should? A certain food that is unhealthy that you eat too often? A particular habit that causes trouble in friendships or relationships? Now is the time to get these things right. Recognizing things you want to improve on is half the battle of making a resolution. Resolving to work out a certain number of times per week or to turn off your electronics by a specific time every night leave no room for grey area. Either you've made the change you want to make or you haven't. Easy!

Attainability
One of the most common complaints about New Year's resolutions I hear is that they're too big to be attained. You should not resolve to find a boyfriend or get promoted or get into a good college. You have very little control over these things. These "resolutions" are actually not actions, rather, they are events. To make sure your resolution is something you can attain, ask yourself how much control you have over it. If you are the one who gets to make all (or most) of the decision, then it's attainable.

Comprehensiveness
When making multiple resolutions, think about how they fit together. In 2013, one of my resolutions was to spend at least one night per week "letting go" and having fun with friends. Obviously, this would probably be in contradiction with a resolution that involved getting to sleep early every night. Think about how to tweak your resolutions so they fit together and you won't have to make exceptions. Once you let yourself slip once, you're more likely to do it again.

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The bottom line is that resolutions are personal. No one has to read them if you don't want them to. This means that you can resolve to do whatever crazy, silly, bizarre thing you want!

However, New Year's Resolutions can be more serious. They are concrete expressions of how we are going to take advantage of an opportunity to be happier, more fulfilled and overall better people.

Cheers!
xoxo