23 Small Promises You Should Make To Yourself, And Try To Keep For The Rest Of This Year
To speak up when you have something of value to say, even when you’re too scared.
1. That you’ll stop at least one year in when you’re creeping hard on your cousin’s ex girlfriend on Facebook. Try to give yourself some procrastination boundaries, starting with how much time you spend on Facebook.
2. To stop thinking about an ex to the point of it being detrimental. You can miss someone. You can call them. You can think about them, and reminisce. But after a breakup stops being fresh, don’t hurt yourself unnecessarily. If you think to the point of getting yourself upset, try to take a step back and be proactive about taking your mind off of things.
3. To not get so caught up in a diet trend that you stop enjoying your food. Having a healthy relationship with food is a challenge for a lot of men and women, but striving to maintain a balance, whether you’re trying to lose weight or gain it back, will help you in the long run.
4. That you will donate your clothes instead of giving them away.
5. To speak up when you have something of value to say, even when you’re too scared.
6. To tell people when they have something in their teeth.
7. That you will try to eat one fruit, or one vegetable every single day. Because nothing will make you feel worse at the end of the day than eating only protein and carbs.
8. To, at some point, say something if you really like someone (and they aren’t in a serious relationship with someone else). In the course of your entire life, you have so little to lose by admitting you care for someone.
9. That you’ll be honest with yourself about what you want in terms of your career, even if that involves making a change, considering more school, dropping out of school, or making a plan you would’ve once assumed was beyond your capability.
10. That you will give one person who you originally found thirsty, or off-putting, a chance.
11. When you’re ready to get back out there, you’ll go out to meet people, be open to getting set up, or at the very least *consider* trying a dating app.
12. To take a hard look at your bank account, and learn what the biggest drain on your wallet is. And then make a plan to tackle that drain, or take baby steps toward getting better.
13. That you’ll read at least one book, cover to cover, that elicits a reaction, or feeling, and actually makes you want to recommend it to someone else.
14. That if you’re high strung, and wound incredibly tight, you’ll loosen up at least once a month for long enough to go out with friends, whether for dinner or a concert, and enjoy yourself.
15. That if you’ve been on a lazy streak, you’ll try to establish definitive deadlines to encourage yourself to get shit done.
16. To go back through your forgotten music, or your old iTunes, and wonder what the fuck you were thinking, take a lovely musical exploration of your past, and fall back in love with your old music, whether it’s Van Morrison or No Doubt. (“Spiderwebs” was a great song,and you’re kidding yourself if you think otherwise.)
17. That you’ll be honest with yourself about your priorities in this year of your life, whether that means you’re trying to grow your career, your relationship, or move to an entirely new place.
18. That you’ll wear something out of the house that you would’ve assure your friends you’d “never be caught dead in.” Realize that you’re still the same person, even in a crop top, a denim jacket, or birkenstocks. Also, realize that birkenstocks are comfy AF.
19. That you will stop music shaming yourself long enough to listen to old school Jason DeRulo without turning on private session.
20. To stop waiting for happiness to find you and accept that it’s something you have to work for, and find yourself.
21. That you’ll get out of your own way and actually make the move you’ve been overthinking since January, whether that’s asking someone out, applying for a new job, going on a friend date with that chick you totally thought you’d get along with but then never followed up with.
22. That you will take a few minutes to think about what the hell your New Year’s resolution was in January, and consider what went right or wrong.
23. To not judge yourself too harshly when you break one of these rules, and accept that at the end of the day, you’re human, and that means loving yourself through the mistakes. 
