Usually the
prompts of Blogadda bring out the spontaneous writer in me but this time I had
to think and rethink; reflect on the entire year to come up with the lessons I
learnt and then to shortlist the important ones for this blog.
So then here
are my top 5 takeaways from 2017:
1.
If you can do it, then do it. Do not depend on anyone else:
While we do
need help now and then from our siblings; partner; children; friends,
colleagues it is always better to first explore the possibilities of doing it
yourself. Very often you realize that we can do it by ourselves.
This is what
I realized it might be a little difficult, it might take more efforts and more
time but eventually I could most of my tasks myself. And it is so much better
than waiting for the help, the favour and the ‘I owe you’ feeling you are left
with after someone does your work for you.
Most
importantly you are saved of the frustration when the person you are counting
on does not turn up. And your helplessness makes you feel vulnerable. So while
looking at ways of doing my own stuff I came up with more resources of my own.
And ended up feeling good about myself. Therefore, Never depend on others what you
can do yourself.
2.
Set up a deadline:
I am the
kind who hates to be pushed around or threatened with deadlines. So I complete
the work in office at my pace. (Fortunately within the deadline). But come to
my own personal tasks I get distracted and leave so many half finished
projects. And I am easy on myself for not meeting the deadline. The result is I
have more ‘To dos’ in my list than the songs in my play list.
But now if I
have to finish all those half finished projects I have to set a deadline and be
strict about it. Take a step back and look at them if they really need to be
given a conclusion or can be done away with. No sense in having so many things
and some that I may even have lost interest in.
Setting a
deadline for the stuff I am keen on completing is a must. This blog would not
be done it there wasn’t any deadline. Lol.
Maybe I can
indulge myself in one of those things I have been denying myself after
completing the task by the deadline.
3.
Take regular breaks:
This one is from my workplace. I tend to get engrossed in
work so much that I forget to stretch my legs or straighten my spine.And I
learnt the hard waythrough the doctor that I need to compulsorily take breaks
every hour. Walk around, stretch my legs, rotate my neck and shoulders. Relax
for a few minutes before getting back to work.
Sure work is important; but Health is more important if you
want to continue to work.
4.
Give online shopping a long break:
I have been buying even groceries online along with the regular online
shopping of clothes, cosmetics, books, gifts and underclothes. Yes, even
undies. And more from the tempting pop-ups that seem to offer more for less.
Seriously, it has been ages I seem to have forgotten what a regular
grocery store looks like because of the malls where you get everything under
one roof.
Now I am going to give all the online shopping sites a long break and the
malls a miss. Go to the grocery store for groceries; clothes shops for clothes;
the weekly vegetable market for vegetables; and such other shops for specific
use.
Time to switch to REAL shopping.
5.
Love myself. More:
It is not as if I have not been loving myself or loving
myself less; I realized I need to love myself more than before but still not
too much.
To love myself more I will stop doing all those things that
are a waste of time and instead do things that add value to my live and bring
me close to my loved ones.
Like using the phone
for its basic purpose – to talk. So I will be calling up friends and family
more. Read books that will both inspire me and enrich my mind. In short do all
the things that fall in ‘Feel good; Feel happy’ category without guilt
trips.
No more denials – only love and self care.
There, this sums up the takeaways of the year and I intend to
earnestly practice the lessons learnt from these takeaways to make 2018 better
than all the previous years.
‘This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda.’
