1) Get in Shape for the Right Reasons
Yesterday I had not 1 - but 2 - children hanging off me like monkeys from a tree.
Yet as I wondered if my back would be out of whack the next day, I was thankful for all my gym workouts during which I motivated myself with the idea of being strong in case…I needed to be strong. For lifting something, getting out of a situation, trying to do pull ups at a party. All those good reasons - in addition to looking sharp and being healthy.
(And my back is not out of whack!)
2) Experience the World Through a Newbie’s Eyes
When someone who has never been to your neck of the woods visits you, in addition to all the regular touristy sights to see, try roaming around on foot.
I did this in Los Angeles with some kids who were from a snowy area. They had their first sights, touches, and smells of ice plants, lantana, rosemary, birds of paradise, cacti, lavender, fertilizer, and all the other typical plants that grow in LA gardens. It was so much fun to “discover” all these plants for the first time.
And who ever knew that playing with a typewriter could be as much fun as playing games on an iPhone!
3) Say Hello
Interact with strangers and change someone’s life (yes I’ll be trite and say maybe your own).
See what happens if you spend a day without the headphones, saying hi to strangers, chatting with people in cafes or wherever you go. See #4.
4) Find Theme Songs…and Sing Them
I love the lyrics from the following song, by an old band called Jawbreaker. Recently I was talking with a friend about having theme songs as inspiration to get happy or make a change. Do you have theme songs? If not, maybe think about playlists (see #3…on your ipod 
to help you live your proverbial best life.
I have a present: it is the present.
You have to learn to find it within you.
If you can learn to love it,
You just might like it.
You can’t live without it.
There’s a million open windows.
I’m passing these open windows.
There is plenty to criticize.
It gets so easy to narrow these eyes.
But these eyes will stay wide.
I will stay young.
Young and dumb inside.
5) Feel Good About Yourself
It’s hard to commit to “#5″ on a top 5 list. I wanted to say be healthy - because without health it’s hard to be happy and
I wanted to say cherish your friends and family - because without them it’s also hard to be happy.
“Feel good about myself” is the first big goal I ever made, when I realized if anything wasn’t going well in my life it was usually because I was doing something that wasn’t right. By having a simple goal to be happy with yourself, you can quickly trickle down to find the cause - if you’re not eating right, being self destructive, doing work you don’t love etc.
I’ve uploaded a “life self-analysis tool” I created last year that I found to be a very helpful and fun way to figure out what I really wanted / was missing in my life…by reflecting on the past several years. Take a look (it’s a Google doc).
Fun Ways to Plan Your Goals
Keeping a simple list of 10 big goals for the year will keep you focused. I tend to look at my goals on a quarterly basis or if I’m in a funk more often. It only takes a second to “level set” yourself to figure out what you might want to change in your life to get on the right course again.
- Moleskin notebook
- On the back of a business card to keep in your wallet
- Your phone (this is handy but it never feels quite as fulfilling to me as writing)
- Here on SuperViva or online in other listing places…doesn’t have to be fancy.
- In a collage metaphorically, which is fun in addition to your list.
Happy New Year!
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