(토요모임) [29. Dec. 2018] Saturday meeting topic

[리사홍]

Hi, everyone. How’s your 2018 going?

Are you excited about new year?

Saturday, I’d like to talk about your new year’s resolutions.

Has anyone kept your last year new year resolutions? Do you guys think New Year’s day is the best time to set your new year goals? Please feel free to share your opinions.

I want you guys to come up with creative ideas as well. See you all then!

Top ten New Year’s resolutions

Whether your New Year's resolution is to read more books or to spend less time on Facebook, willpower is the key to keeping it.

The New Year is when you think about the past and more importantly, reflect on how you can improve yourself for the upcoming year. It's the time to reflect on the changes you need to make and commit yourself to seeing it through – it's time to make a New Year's Resolution!

Self improvement, or at least the desire for it, is a goal shared by all Australians, which is why so many of us make a New Year's Resolution in the first place. Unfortunately only a fraction of us keep to our resolutions, with experts estimating only about 8% commit to the very end. The secret to achieving your resolution is actually the resolution itself.

Top ten New Year's resolutions and how to start them

Have you ever wondered what everyone else was committing to for the New Year? Have a look at our top 10 and see if yours made the cut. To help you get the ball rolling, we've included some easy ways to help get you started.

1. Improve your fitness

We all know that regular exercise has more health benefits than anything else out there. Studies have shown that improving your fitness also improves your mood, mentality and reduces the risk of some cancers, not to mention it keeps you in shape. It’s easier than ever to find the perfect fitness program, many of which don’t require any gym memberships and minimal equipment.

Where should you start?

Cosmo Body

Biggest Loser

Kayla Itsines

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2. Eat better

There’s more than just working out required to get the body you want. It’s all about the combination of eating better and keeping up your fitness. Cutting junky snacks and adding in more wholesome, farm-fresh foods are a great place to start.

Where should you start?

Changing Habits

Bulk Whole Foods

Aussie Farmers Direct

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3. Quit smoking

If this is the year you kick out your smoking habit, there are plenty of over the counter nicotine replacement therapies. Even if you've tried to quit before and failed, there's no harm in trying again. You could also try an electronic cigarette to help your nicotine cravings.

Where should you start?

Nicotine Gums and Patches

Vaper Empire

Book Depository

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4. Quit drinking

Like trying to quit smoking, many heavy drinkers fail to quit cold turkey. However, unlike smoking there are no alcohol substitutes available over the counter. If you have decided that you'd like to quit drinking this year there is a lot of help and support available. Groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous offers regular meetings and there are a lot of clinics out there to help.

Where should you start?

Wordery

Froothie

iTunes

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5. Learn something new

Have you promised yourself that you'll learn something new this year? Maybe you're looking to take up a new hobby or learn a new language for upcoming travels. With the power of the internet, it's now possible to be certified in a range of courses.

Where should you start?

Courses for Success

Rocket Languages

Online Courses Australia

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6. Travel more

Did you know Australians are some of the world’s worst at taking all their annual leave days? We leave an average of five days unused each year. Just think about what you can do with that – visit beautiful places, experience different cultures, discover a new cuisine. Make 2018 the year you’ll finally see the world, or explore your own backyard.

Where should you start?

Book a flight

Hire a car

Reserve a hotel

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7. Volunteer

Helping others in need is a great and selfless New Year's Resolution. Whether you'd like to head overseas to volunteer, help disadvantaged kids in your local area or something else, there are a lot of organisations out there that can make it happen, according to your schedule. If you don't have a lot of time, you can still donate to a charity whether it be old furniture or monetary donations.

Where should I start?

G Adventures

G Adventures

G Adventures

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8. Meet someone

Being single is so 2017. Make 2018 the year you meet that special someone. You don’t have to be the kind of person who can just start chatting up someone you find cute in a cafe, or that beauty by the bar. There are plenty of online options to help you find a partner. Many of them help break the ice by offering personality tests to show you who you’d be most compatible.

Where should I start?

eHarmony

RSVP

CitySwoon

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9. Sleep more

Tired of being tired? There are more benefits to getting a good night’s sleep than just feeling more refreshed. A proper snooze can do all kinds of things, including keeping your metabolism going strong, help you concentrate better, and make you less likely to get sick.

Where should I start?

Sheridan

Jawbone

Peter Alexander

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10. Get out of debt

The average debt per credit card holder in Australia is $4,461.33, which translates to $800 in interest per year if their interest rate is between 15% to 20%. This is why this is also a popular resolution. Getting out of debt is a great way to get a handle over your finances and increases your borrowing power.

Compare balance transfer credit cards

1. Do you think making new year's resolution is worthwhile? or meaningless? why?

2. What are your resolutions for 2019? Why did you choose them? What are the specific challenges of achieving those resolutions? With whom are you going to achieve them?

3. What were your New Year’s resolutions last year? Why did you choose them?

4. How much of your resolutions did you achieve? Why?

5. What are the good tips to achieve your  resolutions? have you ever tried to keep them? 

   Share some good tips with other members. 

9 creative New Year’s resolutions

iStock

Feel like you start the new year ready to reinvent your life, only to find that, a month later, you’ve given up on everything and are living a life that’s totally indistinguishable from last year?

Cue the guilt spiral, and February already looks bleak.

But maybe the problem isn’t you. Maybe you’re just bored of making and breaking the same resolutions over and over again. You know the drill: Lose weight; eat better; work less; exercise more. It’s no wonder you’re uninspired to keep them going past January.

So why not break the rut this year? Try a new resolution. Do something fun, creative, interesting.

Here are some suggestions, inspired by TED Talks:

Watch 10 movies that were written or directed by women.

If most of the movies you’ve seen are American, 95 percent of them were likely directed by men and up to 90 percent likely had male leading characters. But why does this matter? “[Stories are] the way we understand the world and our place in it. They’re the way we develop empathy for people who have experiences different than our own,” says actress Naomi McDougall Jones. “And right now, all of that is being funneled at us through the prism of this one perspective.”

Studies show that the movies you watch affect your career choices, your relationships, your mental health, your sense of identity and more. So, commit to watching more films made by women and see how your perspective changes. Visit moviesbyher.com for an easily searchable database filled with women-directed movies.

Choose one person you disagree with and take them out to lunch.

Most of us are guilty of “other-ing” people who think or act differently than we do. As a result, we stop seeing their humanity and focus on their differences. Is there anyone you find yourself judging or negatively stereotyping because of their views? Invite them to lunch. However, before you meet, agree on some ground rules — that neither of you will persuade, defend or interrupt. Be curious, conversational and real. And be sure to listen.

When Elizabeth Lesser did this, she and her lunch mate found they had a newfound respect for each other. “Neither of us had tried to change the other, but we also hadn’t pretended that our differences were just going to melt away after a lunch,” she says. “Instead, we had taken our first steps together, past our knee-jerk reactions.”

Schedule weekly time to be bored.

If your brain is always occupied, then you’re probably missing out on some of your best ideas. “When you get bored, you ignite a network in your brain called the ‘default mode,’” says podcaster Monoush Zomorodi. “The default mode is where we connect disparate ideas, we solve some of our most nagging problems, and we do something called ‘autobiographical planning.’ This is when we look back at our lives, we take note of the big moments, we create a personal narrative, and then we set goals and we figure out what steps we need to take to reach them.”

So put down your smartphone, stop playing Candy Crush, and schedule some time to do nothing.

Become pen pals with someone in prison.

Sometimes, it just takes a letter to transform a life. When Marlon Peterson was in prison, he began receiving letters filled with stories and cartoons from schoolchildren. They made him feel like he mattered, and he also shared them with two of his friends who were inmates. Now they’re all published writers, gun violence prevention advocates, and youth program innovators — and Marlon says he owes it to the pen-pal program. “It boosted my sense of worthiness. It gave me a sense of what I could contribute to this planet,” he says.

Once a month, gather some friends to write letters to people at a local prison. Your words might provide the motivation and hope that they need to rebuild their lives.

Do one thing that scares you — knowing you’ll get rejected.

Want to get over a fear of rejection? Jump head first into it. For 30 days, find a new way to get rejected every day. Do what author Jia Jiang did and ask for a “burger refill” the next time you’re at a restaurant. Or, ask a stranger for $100. By the end, you’ll desensitize yourself from the pain of rejection — a pain that could be holding you back from goals you want to accomplish.

“Rejection has bothered me my whole life because I was running away from it,” says Jiang. “Then I started embracing it. I turned that into the biggest gift of my life.”

Talk to a stranger every week.

It’s easy to get swept up in your routine and forget about the people around you. This year, commit to talking to strangers — whether it’s the person waiting in line with you at the grocery store, someone you see everyday on your morning commute, or a parent at your child’s school. Even if it’s just “hello” or a “how are you doing today,” those little interactions can brighten your day and make another person feel seen.

“When you talk to strangers, you’re making beautiful interruptions into the expected narrative of your daily life and theirs,” says Kio Stark. You might just be surprised by the new and unexpected connections you make.

Celebrate one of your failures with friends.

Many of the biggest success stories begin with a risky, audacious idea, but often we let our fear of failure prevent us from trying at all. Instead, embrace it. Think of something you royally screwed up — and then celebrate it. It’ll encourage you to test out more moonshot ideas without worrying about what people will think if your plans don’t work out.

Try inviting your friends to dinner to celebrate one of your failures. Make a night of it, have fun with it, and see what you’re able to accomplish when you stop fearing failure.

Say yes to everything for one month.

Try an experiment: say “yes” to everything that scares you. Raise your hand to take on a new project at work. Speak at a town hall about an issue close to your heart. Go to that intimidating kickboxing class your friend keeps inviting you to.

When TV producer Shonda Rhimes committed to saying “yes” to things that made her nervous, she stretched her comfort zone more than she could’ve imagined. “The very act of doing the thing that scared me undid the fear, made it not scary,” she says. “‘Yes’ changed my life. ‘Yes’ changed me.”

Buy fruits and vegetables that don’t look perfect.

Ever go to the grocery store and inspect every piece of produce until you find the most flawless one? Our desire for perfect fruits and vegetables leads to a ton of food waste. A full third of our food is thrown away. “We’re not talking about rotten stuff,” says activist Tristram Stuart. “We’re talking about good, fresh food.”

This year, try to choose fruits and vegetables that look a little busted — not rotten, just imperfect. They’ll be perfectly edible, and you’ll do your part to help reduce food waste.

1. Above those ideas, which one do you find the most interesting? why?

2. What creative resolutions do you have in mind? please share your opinions.

[Scarlet]

Lisa !~ Luv your last topic for 2018 :)
Let's look back at 2018 and look forward to 2019 with new year's resolutions :)
See you tomorrow !~

[리사홍]

I appreciate your compliment! '칭찬은 고래도 춤추게 한다' woww, i need to keep working on posting good topics! well, it's a perfect timing to discuss about new year's resolutions. I can't wait to hear your resolutions! see you tmr!

[John Park]

Happy new year !!!!!