I don’t do resolutions. I used to, but I always gave up on them far too quickly. So, for the past few years, I’ve let the new year roll in with no set goals for the year.

So this year, I’m doing things a little differently.

Firstly, I’ve selected a word of the year. I had never done this before, or even heard about it, but after reading various Instagram posts of other people’s words of the year, I was intrigued by the idea. I decided that “Focus” would be my word for 2019. I often find that I am unfocused and that I flitter my free time away. And then I look back and feel guilty about the wasted time and opportunities.

Secondly, I’ve decided that in lieu of resolutions, I will come up with intentions, or goals, for this year. They will be fairly quantifiable so that I have a measure of success.

There are a number of intentions that will get my “focus” in 2019.

Spending on Clothes

Starting off the list, I want to focus on my spending habits, particularly in terms of clothing. Although I have become a more conscientious consumer over the pass few years and I spend most of my money on secondhand or ethically produced garments, I find that I have fallen into a habit of wanting new (and new to me) things a lot lately. As such, I have joined a challenge on Instagram call the #byebuychallenge and have pledged to buy no new (or new to me) clothing from January 1 – March 31. I won’t pretend that I’m not afraid to fail here. If you’ve read my post about how I failed at the last shopping ban I attempted, you will see that this fear is well founded.

But I really don’t need any new clothing. I have enough. And over the past few months, even though I’ve spent a lot of money on clothing, I’ve added pieces that I really love and feel great wearing. So for the next few months, my intention is to take the items that I already own and make a variety of outfits.

Once the no spending challenge is over, I want to be better at sticking to the monthly clothing budget that I have set for myself. In the past, I have taken money from other categories or savings to justify going over my budget, which I always feel guilty about it.

Learn to Sew / Make Something

During my first Christmas in our house, 8 years ago, I had asked for a sewing machine. I really wanted to be somebody who created something, or at least, hemmed my own pants. And in those 8 years, I have never touched that machine. My mom, who visits us for a few months in the spring, is the only one who has used it and I usually stockpile any sewing projects for her while she is here. I want to change that this year. I recently bought a pair of secondhand Levis that I need to hem. They are a straight leg style so I think that reattaching the original hem will be easier. Or at least I hope so.

Be more present

I want to continue to slow down and to focus on the things and people that add value to my life. I want to be more present and in the moment. This means putting my phone away during social interactions. A while back, I did a roundup of some interesting things I had read and one was to not use your phone in any situation where you wouldn’t pull out a book to read. For example, at a restaurant, I would never pull out a book and read it while chatting with others and a phone should be no different. I’ve tried to stick to this, but I admit that I am still guilty of doing it occasionally.

It also means that I will give me attention wholly to a given situation. I will pause to listen to my kids (or anyone) intently when they tell me something, instead of partly listening while I am doing something else.

Read more books / Write more

I used to read a lot more books than I do now. I’m not sure why I’ve drifted away from reading. Maybe I’ve been spending too much free time on social media and most of my “reading” is now done there or on the internet. But one of my intentions is to get back to reading in the evenings. And I would like to broaden my horizons with books written from a variety of authors from different cultures and backgrounds. I have a goal to read at least 2 books per month. If you have any suggestions of great books, I’d love for you to share them in the comments.

I want to focus on the blog and get some great posts for you to read. I have thoroughly enjoyed writing in this space. I am proud of the work that I have produced but I also see that there are so many ways for me to grow and evolve. It is my intention to expand on the topic of minimalism in all aspects of life and being content with what we own. If you have any suggestions of things that you’d like to read about, I’d love for you to share them with me.

Prioritize health

In general, my health is pretty good. I eat pretty good, most of the time, and I work out, albeit sporadically. But I’ve had a few health issues/scares in 2018 which makes me realize how important it is to take care of my body. So for 2019, my intention is to make a workout plan that I can stick to. I am not an early morning person but that seems to be the best time for me to work out and I need to figure out how to make that a priority. It will certainly involve an earlier bedtime which will be difficult because I am a night owl.

The other change I want to make is to move away from animal products and to cook more vegetarian meals. As I write this, I am preparing a grocery list with ingredients to make 3 vegetarian meals.

Reduce plastic use / food waste

This had been a resolution a few years ago that started out really well but after a few months, fell by the wayside. Some of the practices have been maintained such as using a disposable razor, bringing our own shopping bags to the store, refusing plastic straws at restaurants (we’re not perfect here, but we try), and purchasing reusable straws for our home. We try to select glass or aluminum instead of plastic when we can and we have gotten our garbage production down to 1 bag per week at times for our family of 4.

This year, I would like to continue these practices but I would also like to get our garbage production down even lower, so that we never have more than 1 bag. Our city does not currently have a composting program in place but I have read of a nearby service that we can subscribe to in which a company will deliver a composting container to us weekly and take the one that we set out from the previous week.

Well, this ended up being a more extensive list than I had thought it would be. I think a lot of the intentions are interwoven together such as less spending on clothes and learning to sew, as well as prioritizing health and reducing plastic and food waste. Even being more present and reading more books are interrelated…they both exclude a reliance on electronics.

I do feel optimistic about the list and I look forward to revisiting it throughout the year, possibly June or July for a mid-year update and obviously, at the end of the year, to see if my intentions were met.

Please share your resolutions / intentions / goals for the new year in the comments. I’d love to hear all about them.