By saramyriad
I stopped doing traditional resolutions years ago because they simply don’t work for me. I start off strong, then I fall off. That’s why gyms are packed in January and empty out by April. I do goals broken down by months. I do journaling, and I make lists. I decide what things my next year’s self won’t be doing any longer. And here, I am including 5 things I bet your 2026 self is also too good for.
- Caring what others think.
- Neglecting your hobbies.
- Not paying attention to finances.
- Filling your head with too much content.
- Not having a gratitude practice.
Caring what others think.
No one is paying as much attention to you as you pay attention to yourself. I know, I know. It’s hard to accept this. Especially if you suffer from anxiety, it’s easy to imagine people are examining every little thing you do. To that I would counter, think of all the times you’re out in the world and glance at people. How often do you remember those people a few days later? Even people who create online aren’t on the radar of others 24/7. That’s why things rise and fall out of the public eye so easily. Once you realize this, it frees you up to be more yourself and to do what makes you happy. Also, on the off chance someone IS examining you? We call those people creeps. We don’t care about them.
Neglecting your hobbies.
Neglecting your hobbies. We live in a horribly capitalist society where everything has to serve a purpose, and God help you if that purpose doesn’t center around money. You like making quilts? You’d better be selling those quilts at the local craft fair. We have lost the gift of creating for the sake of creation; we have forgotten than it is the natural and divine right of every human on this planet to create, to make, to use our minds and hands to bring joy. Children know this intrinsically. So should your 2026 self. Make time to have hobbies, just for the fun of it. Your soul needs it.
Not paying attention to finances.
Not paying attention to finances and just raw dogging your bank account is the opposite of a flex. Being in debt isn’t cute. Shopping as therapy isn’t cute. Your 2026 self knows better than that. They want to be responsible while still having fun. And you know what’s really fun? Having a nicely diversified investment portfolio and monthly budget. If you’re reading this and you’re younger than 30, even more reason to start this NOW.
Filling your head with too much content.
I’m not active on social media, apart from YouTube. And let me tell you, even that is more than enough for me to go down rabbit holes. My feed is curated for things I care about: art, anti-consumerism, books. But having people in my ears going “yip yip yip” all day isn’t healthy, even if the messages and information itself is good. You need quiet time for your brain to process and come up with things on its own. Inspiration and education is good, but not when you’re so oversaturated with it you can’t tell your ideas from someone else’s.
Not having a daily gratitude practice.
Gratitude can fix a multitude of things. This isn’t woo woo; I’m not telling you that you only have to think positive and every shitty thing will work itself out. That obviously doesn’t work. If it did, we wouldn’t have things like wars or people who can’t use turn signals. (Oh my god, did she just compare people who don’t use turn signals to war?) This is what your 2026 self is going to do. Get a journal. It doesn’t have to be fancy. You don’t need one with all the bells and whistles, unless you really want one and will use it. You could do this with a plain notebook. Every day, write down what you’re grateful for. Bonus points if it’s something really specific. Like: “I am grateful for the way the sun reflects off my ferret’s fur as he suns himself in the window because it reminds me how beautiful the weather is.” Something that can anchor you into moments is powerful.
That’s it. Five things my 2026 self won’t be doing. I hope this gave you an idea or two.