This is a guest post by Lauren Jones of the Simple Life Project. Enjoy!
It’s a new year. Many people rev up their New Year’s resolutions come January only to see them dissolve by February. This simple guide will help you take small yet actionable baby steps to make a sustainable change in your life this year!
I am a mom of three little ones (soon to be four) and I can personally attest to saying making a change as a BUSY mom is doable! Follow me here….
Research shows that it takes roughly 66 days for a new habit to be fully formed. The number used to be 21 days, and it is getting slightly longer. That’s perfectly fine with me.
It’s more time to process and take small baby steps to actual change. Sometimes in life faster is slower and slower is faster. Are you tracking with me? If you try and rush something it may slow you down or stall in the long run.
Many of you set high expectations for yourselves in January only to feel let down come March. That diet you started and never finished, or the reading plan you fell away from. It doesn’t have to be this way….
Ask yourself:
- What is one area in your life you would love to make progress in the right direction in?
- What is one small goal in this area I can start chipping away at today?
- Who can I get on my side to keep me accountable when I feel like giving up?
Get rid of negativity in your life and practice gratitude
It may seem cliche, but gratitude is everything when it comes to evaluating your life and what matters most to you as a person. Negativity and careless actions throughout your day add up to being unproductive and stale in your quest to a better you.
Some ways I like to practice gratitude as a mom of three (almost four) little ones:
- Think of 3 ways you were blessed by someone this week as you’re driving and be thankful for them.
- Pray often.
- Seek to help at least one person each day (even if that member is in your family – I guarantee you that this gets completed each day).
- Approach your daily problems with the glass is half full mindset.
- Try not to take yourself too seriously and laugh.
These doable approaches to life will help you rid yourself of negativity.
Declutter a small space and it will get the ball rolling
I love decluttering for so many reasons. It relieves chaos from the home and our minds. I speak about this on my podcast so much! I never get sick of talking about it.
I always tell a struggling and overwhelmed mama to just start in the bathroom if she is feeling stuck and unable to fathom decluttering. This spot in the home is full of many items that are nonsentimental and easy to toss. Try it out today!
Once you get that ball rolling it will motivate you to start other areas in your life that may also be cluttering your mental space.
Need some more minimal and decluttering inspiration? Check my blog and I will hook you up.
Define what change you want to make by writing it down
There is nothing better than a brain dump as a busy mom, am I right? I love to brain dump my to-do’s at night. The same goes for goals and changes you want to make. Brain dump areas that need a change and prioritize them from most important to least important.
Getting a cute new planner doesn’t hurt either. I love this Weekly Life Planner.
Take one actionable step to change a day
I know one thing is for sure….
Asking me to do more than one thing a day outside of my routine is not going to happen. Hello, mama to 3 kids under 4 with a newborn on the way. I just can’t do it all and prioritize the important to-do’s each day for survival.
Write down one goal to set for the day to get you toward making a small baby step toward change.
Example: You want to get your health in line but feel overwhelmed and unsure of where to start.
Solution: Set a goal to swap out any unhealthy drinks for water today. Drink more water as your one priority to making a change.
Give yourself grace and be kind to others
You may not think grace and a little kindness will get you toward your goals of making a change but it will.
Sometimes taking the focus off of ourselves and putting someone else first is just the recipe we need to make progress in our lives. Coupled with not being too hard on ourselves (especially as a mama) to not having to be perfect all the time.
I have had my fair share of tears (due to mom guilt) feeling like a failure and a bad parent for ridiculous reasons. Talking with my husband and people closest to me always helps get that mom guilt out of my life. Grace and kindness do wonderful things for the soul!
Try out some of these simple yet doable tips for making a change in your life with just small baby steps! You can do it, mama; I am rooting for you!
Xoxo
Lauren
