Seeking meaningful well-being in 2022

Just like that, it's 2022. The impetus at this time is usually to set new year's resolutions, but why, when so many are abandoned before the end of January? Yup – according to Forbes nearly 80% of our well-intended goals will be long forgotten after just 3 weeks!

Golly, that seems dismal. But before you throw in the towel we thought to re-examine the intention behind resolutions. Perhaps this time of year should be less about setting goals for fraught self-improvement and more about seeking meaningful well-being, no matter how that looks for you.

So, to get you mulling over new ways of thinking, consider these three simple ideas that may help instill long-lasting changes beyond just the first 30 days of 2022:

Now is not the time to think big.

This might not be what you expected to read first up, but hear me out. Attempting to make too many big changes at the same time – or changes in too many areas of our lives – is likely to backfire. Instead, identify something that's already working and think about how to improve it. If you already have a good yoga practice, can you add 10 minutes of meditation to the end? If you've mastered some easy and delicious family recipes, why not learn how to grow your own produce for them? (Hint: we have a workshop for that).

Consider your values.

Values are our guideposts; they help us realise what's most important in our lives. If challenge and growth are your values, you'll likely stretch yourself with experiences like learning a new skill (we have workshops for that). Values aren't good or bad, they just are. And if you’re true to yours, you’ll probably find that your goals are aligned to your core values.

Think of goals not as a destination, but a journey of behaviors.

Even if you have a water-tight, measurable goal, external circumstances can impact your ability to meet it (hello, COVID?). This doesn’t mean that you haven’t made progress. Stay on course, be flexible, and above all – be kind to yourself. You'll benefit more from continued good habits and behaviours than from achieving a single goal.

The turn of a new year is absolutely a great time to reflect on the past 12 months and plan for the next 12 – we hope this year you can try something new to bring about lasting change.