As we are well into the holiday season, we should focus more on spending quality time with family, friends, and all those we hold dear. Rather than obsess over the materialistic coma that typically defines the current holiday experience.
For the faithful, we know that Christmas is more than simply what gifts received and what gifts you gave that people liked over others’ gifts. Sure, gift giving is part of it because it affords us a moment to show how much others mean to us. Even in the most modest present, we can show others that we are thinking of them and they are someone we value.
The spirit of Christmas is love, joy, and goodwill amongst all in the human race. Should that be solely reserved for the Christmas season? Why can we not show this kindness all year long? Show consideration every day regardless of the holiday? It is not easy. But something that could help change our community dynamic.
The common part of our daily life is myopically focusing on our needs and wants and ignoring all those around us who we do not know, never met, or do not expect to see again. People are willing to give change to the homeless or drop money in the Salvation Army buckets during the holidays but will step over those in need any other time.
I am guilty of this too at times. Sometimes, I am so focused on my schedule I fail to show basic consideration to what is around me. That is why my goal in 2024 is to be part of the solution rather than the problem in my respective communities. I am not a big fan of resolutions, but I do look at changes to make. One change I will definitely make is to be more considerate of those around me or opportunities to contribute to a better society.
Showing kindness does not mean completely taking another person’s problems or issues on our shoulders. People should always champion their own outcomes. That is fundamental to a free society, which I will talk more about in the future. But I do feel like there are reasonable things we can do to alleviate the impact of people’s situations. Sometimes basic kindness or listening ear can be enough to help people sort out some aspects of their troubles.
Back to resolutions. The biggest problem I have with New Year's Resolutions is that they are way to easy to abandon at the first chance to break them. In reality, resolutions can be unreasonable or shortsighted in terms of really planning and preparing yourself to meet those goals and expectations. For instance, if you want to lose weight in the next year, you need to know how much you need to lose, how you can best lose weight in a sustainable and healthy way, and what is a reasonable timeline. Also, how to get back on track when you have a cheat day or two.
Personally, I found the easiest change to make in my life is when I know not only what I want to change and how, but also why I need to make the change and what benefits I will gain or consequences I will avoid. That helps me with the planning and tracking of the lifestyle change. Otherwise, it would be easy to simply stop the change process once it becomes inconvenient.
For instance, I plan on trying to be more kind to my fellow human in the sense of volunteering a bit more than I already do. Support more helpful organizations that do good in this world. It would be easier to backtrack on this goal if I do not budget personally or professionally well. But, if I set realistic expectations and schedule effectively, I think it will be easier to stick with even when life gets busy.
We always want better, expect more, and want to do less. But, we must champion our successes and desired outcomes. We cannot expect others to do all the heavy lifting. Nothing wrong with asking for help. But we must be willing to be the driving force behind our futures. In 2024, we must be able to champion the personal change we want in our lives, careers, and around us.
I want everyone to achieve their goals and expectations next year. In my content, I will focus on highlighting ideas that can make this easier and more compatible with daily life. We all can be our best selves in 2024!
I wish everyone Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year.