10 Upside-Down New Year’s Resolutions

On the eve of the New Year, many of us write goals of all that we want to accomplish over the next 365 days. Our goals typically include things like conquering our weaknesses and achieving success. 

I’ve written goals in the past like, “Clean Out Clutter” and “Get Organized” which for me are about as helpful as shoveling snow in the middle of a blizzard. At some point you just toss the shovel and go sledding.

Michael Hyatt, leadership expert, said that people write down the same New Year’s Resolutions year after year but forget them around mid-February. So how can we write realistic goals that we will actually accomplish?

This year, I’ve flipped a few goals upside-down.  I guarantee, you won’t have any trouble accomplishing them. 

With this in mind, here are my 10 hopes for you for at least one moment in 2015:

I hope you will be…

 

1. MESSY     Because it will mean you were creative.

Take chances, makes mistakes, get messy! ~Ms. Frizzle, The Magic School Bus

 

2. LONELY     Because it will drive you to make a new friend.

Loneliness is God’s gift that drives us into relationship and enlarges our hearts to love. ~Shana Schutte

 

3. SAD     Because it will mean you allowed yourself to feel.

Heaven knows we need never be ashamed of our tears, for they are rain upon the blinding dust of earth, overlying our hard hearts. ~Charles Dickens, Great Expectations

 

4. IGNORANT     Because it will give you the desire to learn.

I am always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it. ~Pablo Picasso

 

5. A MISTAKE-MAKER     Because it will mean you tried something new.

“A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new.” ~Albert Einstein

 

6. WRONG     Because it means you get to say you’re sorry.

Apologizing is difficult because it requires humility. ~Renee Garfinkel

 

7. NEEDY     Because it gives you the gift of asking for help.

Forget what you’ve been told–seeking assistance is the sign of a great leader. ~Lorie Corcuera

 

8. BORED     Because then you might be inventive.

A little boredom breeds creativity. ~Steve Maxwell

 

9. UNCERTAIN     Because then you will have to trust.

Uncertainty is crucial, it is God’s proving ground, a place of unparalleled character growth. ~Tom Avery

 

10. WEAK     Because then you will see the power of God.

My grace is enough for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness. ~God

 

When we turn our New Year’s Resolutions upside down, they become goals we may actually accomplish!  And I believe if we accomplish these, we will become people of deeper character, teachable, real, dependent on God, and full of love and empathy for those around us.

Here’s to a beautiful 2015.