Can you believe we’re rounding up another year so soon?
Can you believe we’re rounding up another year so soon? 2018 seems to have whizzed on by but the new year brings fresh hope, new adventures and another twelve months to live your life to the fullest. So what are your New Year’s resolutions for 2019? If you’re struggling to find something, here’s a bit of inspiration to get you started.
Start A Business
Ever wanted your own fashion line? Have a passion for cooking and have a few recipes you want to show off? 2019 is a great time to start a business if you’ve been considering it for a while. It’s not a cheap investment so you’ll need some savings to back you or you could always try getting one of the Cigno Business Loans, to give you that little bit of financial aid needed to start up your venture.
When starting a business, you want to be strict with your money and be prepared to work hard. Success rarely comes overnight from just sitting on your bum doing nothing. So make sure you’re fully invested into this before you jump in head first. Get some legal advice and really research your business idea.
Get Fit
This may be the year where the thousands of gym-goers who start the gym in January, actually stick it out for the long-run. Getting fit takes a lot of dedication to go on a regular basis. Getting up at the crack of dawn to do some exercise before work or spending an hour or so of your evening, running on a treadmill or lifting weights.
The Christmas food binge will probably help kick you into action but if 2019 is your year to get fit, do something you enjoy doing and not because a friend’s doing it or because it’s popular. We can lose our motivation very quickly if we don’t enjoy the workout so if you prefer a group sport, find a place to do a group sport. If you prefer outdoor running, run outdoors!
Save, Save, Save
It’s so easy to spend your money but incredibly hard to save it. We get tempted by social outings with friends. There’s always a birthday present that needs buying or a household bill that needs paying. But it is possible to save if you put your mind to it. Write down everything that you spend each month onto a spreadsheet and all of your earnings. Take note of your biggest expenditures and see if you can cut them down in any way. Here are some usual culprits:
- Bills – We can’t avoid them, we have to pay, but we could be getting a better deal elsewhere. Whether it’s your mobile network, internet or utility provider, compare what you currently pay with quotes from other companies. You can end up saving yourself a fortune.
- Memberships – Memberships and any form of subscriptions are sucking out money each month, and it’s not until you cancel them, that you realise how much money you’ve saved. Freeze any memberships or subscriptions for the time being while you save.
- Mortgage/Rent – This one is a little more difficult. but there are still ways to reduce it. Challenging your landlord if you think the rent is too high in relation to the living conditions or changing your mortgage to a different lender could potentially give you that extra cash to put aside each month.
Try and set a goal of how much you’d like to save and make necessary sacrifices like eating in instead of eating out and bulk buying food and household items when they are on offer.
Travel The World
There’s nothing like exploring a new city or country, and we should all give ourselves the opportunity to travel because there is so much to see and do outside of your own doorstep. Travelling the world, of course, does cost money so it might be a good idea to use the saving tips above so that you have the relevant funds to go.
Shop around when you’re thinking of travelling. With so many avenues of travel available to you, there’s plenty of deals online and in your local travel agents. Look out for last minute deals and flash sales. Write up a bucket list of places you’d like to visit this year and make it a resolution to complete them all or at least the majority of them before the year is up.
Stop Procrastinating And Learn Something New
We can be experts at procrastinating, especially when there are so many opportunities for distraction. However, we can waste a lot of valuable time by avoiding doing something, and that can cause us a lot of stress later down the line. Find the triggers that make you procrastinate and remove them. Perhaps it’s mindlessly scrolling through Facebook or watching all of the videos of YouTube. There are ways of blocking these sites, so you’re not tempted to revert to your old ways.
It’s also great to learn something new, particularly if it’s something you’ve wanted to explore for a while now. Maybe it’s mastering a new language or how to work a dishwasher even though you’re in your mid-twenties (no judgments here). There’s always an opportunity to learn something new!
Enjoy The Little Things
Life passes us by quickly, and we realise that it’s never always on our side. It’s important to enjoy the little things because none of us can guarantee there will be a tomorrow. So treat yourself every so often, live in the moment when making memories and cherish those currently in your life. These little things can be missed or even forgotten so pay attention to them.
Not everyone has or chooses to have a new year’s resolution but having some sort of goal can spur us on, to achieve something wonderful and meaningful to you. So what’s your resolution for 2019? Make it a good one this and let this year bring something new to your life to make it the best year yet!
