5 Ways To Make 2015 Better

Every year we make resolutions – promises that we will be a better version of ourselves in the new year. Some people make their resolutions stick for a short while and others get so intoxicated on New Year’s Eve that they don’t even remember them.

Challenge yourself with these steps and life will be so much more enjoyable. Not worrying about what the world thinks of you and being secure in yourself is the key to a happy life. Below is a list of five steps you can take to make sure you become a better you in 2015!

1. Smash The Scale

If you own a scale, break it! The scale is your enemy and the number one defeater of a healthy lifestyle. You don’t have to be overweight or the perfect weight to get caught up in the numbers game. No one is immune to the pressure of reaching a numerical goal. NO ONE! By smashing the scale you are stopping yourself from excessively checking your weight when you wake up, after you go to the bathroom, after you work out, after you eat a piece of chocolate, etc… By becoming scale-obsessed you focus more on an “acceptable” number and not on how you feel.

If you start working out, staying away from a scale is the best thing you can do. I can tell you from my own experience – after a month of working out and feeling like you’ve accomplished so much, stepping on the scale and seeing that your weight hasn’t changed is totally soul-crushing. I’ve been there and after having a total break down, was told by my husband that I was making progress – my clothes had gotten looser. It was that I had gained muscle, and muscle weighs more than fat – that is why the scale hadn’t changed. The truth is you just need to focus on how you feel and not the number. If you feel better about yourself and notice a change, then you deserve to celebrate instead of focusing on losing five pounds.

2. Stop Comparing Yourself

We all need to stop looking at each other and comparing ourselves. It is so toxic. We are all different and no two people should be the same. Don’t look at a celebrity and wish you were them. ALL celebrities are photoshopped to the extreme in photos, posters, commercials, and music videos. Even on the red carpet, concerts, movies, and personal appearances they are caked in makeup – that goes for men, too. NO ONE LOOKS THAT PERFECT! It’s impossible – we all have lines, blemishes, and flaws. To compare yourself to someone who isn’t even real themselves is an impossible feat. You shouldn’t want to look or be like someone else because you should love the unique person that you are. We are all amazing individuals, with incredible features that make us “US.”

man in mirror

3. Mirror Mirror

For so many of us, the mirror is a great enemy. On your lowest of days you may avoid one altogether and if you catch yourself in its reflection, you completely bash everything you see.

I challenge everyone to see themselves differently, start to appreciate the things you have. After you take a shower, stand in front of the mirror and admire all that you are – there are no flaws. Everything you are was specifically designed for you, making you an original individual and incredibly special.

Put music on and perform like Beyoncé in the mirror. Make the mirror fun – do you think Beyoncé gives a crap about the negative things people say about her?! HELL NO! She is Beyoncé! While she is like every other woman who has insecure days, she isn’t afraid to be who she is and rock what she has.

“Your self-worth is determined by YOU. You don’t have to depend on someone telling you who you are.” – Beyoncé

And finally, every time you catch your reflection take a moment and say something you love about yourself out loud. If you are incredibly insecure, start small – compliment your eyes, teeth, the shape of your ears… anything you feel comfortable with. Just don’t lie to yourself – truly appreciate who you are. Over time, you will begin to see more of the things that make you beautiful.

4. Don’t Conform

Stop feeling like you have to look or act a certain way to be accepted in life. People of any weight, height, ethnicity and religion have friends and find love every day. Having a thigh gap, larger breasts, abs, or blonde hair will not make someone love you or want to be your friend.

elderly women fashion

You have to love yourself first in order to be accept love from someone else. You shouldn’t starve yourself to achieve the perfect weight or have plastic surgery because someone makes fun of your nose. If you are a woman, you don’t have to wear makeup all the time. I gave up on that this past year myself. I used to sit in the mirror and put on mascara, foundation, and lipstick just to go to the grocery store because it always felt like if you don’t, people would think you were ugly.

The world didn’t end and people didn’t call me ugly. I feel so much better just being me, not having to worry about what other people think all the time. When you build up your inner confidence, people will begin to see a difference in you on the outside. The key is to just be yourself. There is always going to be someone who is jealous or hateful in life – you shouldn’t feel like you have to change yourself for a person to accept you.

5. Enjoy Life

Stop caring about what other people think. It’s incredibly pointless in the grand scheme of things that are your life. What somebody said to you in 8th grade shouldn’t matter to you in a week, month, or ten years from then. Try and live outside of your comfort zone every day. Dare yourself to try a new activity, food, or just go makeup-free. Wear something that you’ve always been afraid to wear and rock the hell out of it.

By challenging yourself every day, you will start to discover the real you – the one you were always meant to be. Once you’ve found yourself, don’t let go of that person. Life is too short to care about the small insignificant things that cross your path, let your inner confidence guide you through a carefree existence.

It is all about the journey – there are going to be hard times, struggles, and points where you feel like giving up. DON’T! The reward of pushing through everything is a better understanding of yourself and the moments that you live for. Yes, there are totally moments when things are uncomfortable and crushing, but those aren’t the moments you’ll remember sitting on your porch when you’re eighty years old. You’re going to remember the moments when you stayed up all night laughing with your friends or the time you took a risk and it paid off.

Live the life you want, because it is the only one you’re going to get.

This post appeared in Issue 6 of our latest magazine! To read the magazine for free online, click here! You can also get a copy in print!