New Year's Resolutions, But For Your Home!
The end of the year is fast approaching, and while I’m savoring the joy of the holiday season with loved ones, I wanted to take a moment to talk about resolutions for your home. Now for some of you, your feelings about resolutions may be mixed. How many times have we promised ourselves this year would finally be the one where we made use of that gym membership?
The reason many people don’t fulfill their resolutions is because they don’t have a structured plan to see them through, and they focus more on the goal than the process. Experts in habit change emphasize the importance of taking small steps, and celebrating achievements on the way toward your ultimate goal. This helps you enjoy the process more and ensures you’ll stay motivated.
With that in mind, I’ve created a list of New Year’s resolutions for your home! Helping homeowners create happy, healthy, sustainable homes is central to my business. By choosing a few simple resolutions to focus on throughout the new year, you’ll be well on your way to living in the home of your dreams. I’ve provided you with powerful “I” statements that you can add to your daily affirmations. I’ve highlighted a few small steps you can take to get started on your happy, healthy home resolutions as well.
Having a quiet space where you can focus on appreciating your home and plan for the future is a wonderful way to make a fresh start in the new year!
To get you started, carve out a space away from high-traffic areas. See my ideas here for a cozy conversation nook. Creating a safe, comfortable space like this is perfect for quiet reflection.
Natural light is a mood-booster, so an area with a window is helpful. Have a drawer filled with your journal, calendar, planner, pens, pencils, etc. Anything you think you might need to get the most out of the time you spend there. Let the family know that when you’re in this space, you’d like to keep interruptions to a minimum. This is your time to focus, journal, reflect, and plan.
When it comes to our homes, we have to practice appreciating what already is to begin feeling good about it. This active practice of gratitude allows us to see possibility everywhere. We build up our positivity bias, which brings greater mental clarity and motivation to tackle only-until-now dreamed-of projects. Maybe that means repainting the molding in your home or bringing fresh flowers in every week for a bit of brightness.
Cultivating gratitude takes practice and consistency! The best way to do this is with “habit-stacking.” Simply put, add a little gratitude practice for your home to something you already do. If you already have a journaling habit, add it there!
Set an intention to focus some of your time on your home. Take time to notice the little things. It can be as simple as, “I’m grateful for my beautiful kitchen island.” Or think of the way your home makes you feel. “I’m grateful that my home makes me feel safe and warm.”
The goal isn’t to ignore what you want to change. It’s to notice the beauty already there, which will energize you to want to improve your home even more.
Our homes are a reflection of our internal state, and the opposite is also true. The environment around us impacts our internal sense of well-being. So this year, resolve to create a home environment that fosters peace and good health!
One way to approach this is to limit the amount of “stuff” that makes its way into your home. Resolve to curate thoughtful products and items that truly make you happy. You could also choose to focus on healthy, sustainable items, like green cleaning products and low-VOC paints.
Here’s how to be more intentional about what you bring into your home: every time you are tempted to buy something, wait a few days. Give yourself the time to consider whether this item will make you and your home happy. This is a mindful way of only allowing items in your home that truly bring you joy.
When life gets busy it’s so easy to neglect our homes! Resolve this year to stay on top of maintenance, repairs, and care for your home. If you’ve started working on cultivating gratitude for your home, this will be much easier!
What you’ll notice once you start practicing gratitude for your home is you want to show your home more love. Rather than seeing all its faults, you start to notice what drew you to it in the first place. And when we’re grateful for something in our lives, we want to take care of it.
How to start: practice gratitude first, for at least a month. Then add one small task daily, like sweeping the floor. Do that for a month, then reflect on how it changes how you feel about your home. When you’re ready, add more. This can be a big repair project, or bringing fresh flowers into your home every week. Starting a monthly calendar is helpful here too.
Remember, this is a marathon, not a sprint! The important thing is taking those small steps to build momentum.
Think ahead a year from now. What would your home feel like if you implemented small steps toward these resolutions? Would you have more gatherings? Would you host dinner parties more often? Would you feel more happy in your home, and confident that you were maintaining it for the years to come? How would that change how you live day to day in your home?
In my years of working with clients to help them create the ocean retreat of their dreams, I hear one thing over and over: I wish I had done this sooner. The joy that comes with living in a home you’re proud of, that you take care of, is irreplaceable. And the sooner you start these resolutions, the sooner you can stop worrying about everything you might want to change, and actually take action to change it.
And with that freedom from worry comes more time and more enthusiasm to create lasting experiences in your home for yourself and your loved ones.
And now I want to hear from you! What’s your New Year’s resolution for your home? Did any of these resonate with you? Leave a comment below.
Happy New Year!
Shannon
The reason many people don’t fulfill their resolutions is because they don’t have a structured plan to see them through, and they focus more on the goal than the process. Experts in habit change emphasize the importance of taking small steps, and celebrating achievements on the way toward your ultimate goal. This helps you enjoy the process more and ensures you’ll stay motivated.
With that in mind, I’ve created a list of New Year’s resolutions for your home! Helping homeowners create happy, healthy, sustainable homes is central to my business. By choosing a few simple resolutions to focus on throughout the new year, you’ll be well on your way to living in the home of your dreams. I’ve provided you with powerful “I” statements that you can add to your daily affirmations. I’ve highlighted a few small steps you can take to get started on your happy, healthy home resolutions as well.
1. I will create an area in my home where I can retreat to for peace and quiet reflection.
Having a quiet space where you can focus on appreciating your home and plan for the future is a wonderful way to make a fresh start in the new year!
To get you started, carve out a space away from high-traffic areas. See my ideas here for a cozy conversation nook. Creating a safe, comfortable space like this is perfect for quiet reflection.
Natural light is a mood-booster, so an area with a window is helpful. Have a drawer filled with your journal, calendar, planner, pens, pencils, etc. Anything you think you might need to get the most out of the time you spend there. Let the family know that when you’re in this space, you’d like to keep interruptions to a minimum. This is your time to focus, journal, reflect, and plan.
2. I will cultivate an attitude of gratitude for my home.
When it comes to our homes, we have to practice appreciating what already is to begin feeling good about it. This active practice of gratitude allows us to see possibility everywhere. We build up our positivity bias, which brings greater mental clarity and motivation to tackle only-until-now dreamed-of projects. Maybe that means repainting the molding in your home or bringing fresh flowers in every week for a bit of brightness.
Cultivating gratitude takes practice and consistency! The best way to do this is with “habit-stacking.” Simply put, add a little gratitude practice for your home to something you already do. If you already have a journaling habit, add it there!
Set an intention to focus some of your time on your home. Take time to notice the little things. It can be as simple as, “I’m grateful for my beautiful kitchen island.” Or think of the way your home makes you feel. “I’m grateful that my home makes me feel safe and warm.”
The goal isn’t to ignore what you want to change. It’s to notice the beauty already there, which will energize you to want to improve your home even more.
3. I will thoughtfully choose what I bring into my home.
Our homes are a reflection of our internal state, and the opposite is also true. The environment around us impacts our internal sense of well-being. So this year, resolve to create a home environment that fosters peace and good health!
One way to approach this is to limit the amount of “stuff” that makes its way into your home. Resolve to curate thoughtful products and items that truly make you happy. You could also choose to focus on healthy, sustainable items, like green cleaning products and low-VOC paints.
Here’s how to be more intentional about what you bring into your home: every time you are tempted to buy something, wait a few days. Give yourself the time to consider whether this item will make you and your home happy. This is a mindful way of only allowing items in your home that truly bring you joy.
4. I will give my home the attention and care it deserves.
When life gets busy it’s so easy to neglect our homes! Resolve this year to stay on top of maintenance, repairs, and care for your home. If you’ve started working on cultivating gratitude for your home, this will be much easier!
What you’ll notice once you start practicing gratitude for your home is you want to show your home more love. Rather than seeing all its faults, you start to notice what drew you to it in the first place. And when we’re grateful for something in our lives, we want to take care of it.
How to start: practice gratitude first, for at least a month. Then add one small task daily, like sweeping the floor. Do that for a month, then reflect on how it changes how you feel about your home. When you’re ready, add more. This can be a big repair project, or bringing fresh flowers into your home every week. Starting a monthly calendar is helpful here too.
Remember, this is a marathon, not a sprint! The important thing is taking those small steps to build momentum.
5. I will open myself and my home up to more fulfilling experiences this year.
Think ahead a year from now. What would your home feel like if you implemented small steps toward these resolutions? Would you have more gatherings? Would you host dinner parties more often? Would you feel more happy in your home, and confident that you were maintaining it for the years to come? How would that change how you live day to day in your home?
In my years of working with clients to help them create the ocean retreat of their dreams, I hear one thing over and over: I wish I had done this sooner. The joy that comes with living in a home you’re proud of, that you take care of, is irreplaceable. And the sooner you start these resolutions, the sooner you can stop worrying about everything you might want to change, and actually take action to change it.
And with that freedom from worry comes more time and more enthusiasm to create lasting experiences in your home for yourself and your loved ones.
And now I want to hear from you! What’s your New Year’s resolution for your home? Did any of these resonate with you? Leave a comment below.
Happy New Year!
Shannon