New Habits for 2023

 

The start of the New Year is a great time to step back and revisit how life is going and dwell on what new habits to start, stop or continue.  This time I am going to try something new - sharing my list in my blog and refer back to it each month to see how i am doing. Below is my list: 

1. Reduce SmartPhone usage: Here are some places where my cell phone usage creeped in -  immediately after waking up to check the news, eating (breakfast, lunch, dinner), shopping (e.g. i am in grocery store and checking some news on my cell phone) and while doing some other activities. The biggest usage for me was from  Chrome,  youtube, linkedin, etc. so primarily from news and social media categories. Fortunately, late last year i realized i need to put a limit to this and now i am much more intentional about cell phone usage. I am tracking my "screen time" usage now and i have put a time limit of 1 hr on above apps. I credit this habit with helping me spend more quality time with my family. 
2. Exercise consistently  - This is a no brainer. Last year i did strength, aerobic and stretching exercises but i wasn't as consistent as i would have liked. This year i plan to be more intentional about it and keep a fitness journal. My goal is rather modest - to just maintain muscle mass and aerobic strength. 
3.  Continue my morning routine - Last year during Nov-Dev time frame I started a new 20 min. habit of doing light yoga, meditation and journaling. Why wait until the new year to kick start a new habit right ? This was probably the best habit i have developed and i found it brings me more mental clarity and peace.  
4.  Drink more water: With remote work and its accompanying frequent video meetings sometimes we get too engrossed and forget to drink enough water.  I plan to drink some water each hour while at work. 
5. Start one new hobby : This year I plan to try my hand at Sketching. There are plenty of videos on youtube and plan to allocate about 30 min each week to it. I got a new sketchbook and so far it's going well.
6. Do atleast 4 courses from Linkedin Learning : I am a big fan of Linkedin Learning and i like the variety of courses it has,  covering not just technology, but also management, productivity and other areas. More specifically i plan to complete - Quick Scripts for difficult conversations, Public speaking for non-native english speakers, Apache Kafka Essential Training: Getting Started , Software Architecture Foundations . They apply to areas i am directly or indirectly involved in at work. 
7. Get better at home organization: Last year  during the holiday season in december i had some free time and i decided to watch some youtube videos on home organization e.g. this one. I tried out some of those tips and was impressed with the results. We now have a home organization system and i enjoy seeing and helping maintain a well organized home. 

I think all of my above habits build on each other and make each other better. e.g. Cleaning and Organizing home makes me feel good and gives me energy that i can use at work and while exercising. As i went about writing this blog post it gave me more motivation to keep up with the above plan.  What are your plans for the year ? Do you plan to write them down? What strategies are you planning to keep yourself accountable for your new habits ? Let me know in the comments below.