The Type A+ Podcast: My Anti-Resolution End of Year To-Do List
Episode Description:
Being a Type A(+) person, you'd think Beth's all about New Year's Resolutions...well, actually, there's nothing she hates more!
On this episode, Beth gives you her musts for the end of the year, including ways to build yourself up and give yourself a BREAK this holiday season.
We'll be back with new episodes in 2023, thank you so much for listening!!
Links mentioned in the episode:
Podcast:
The Type A Plus Podcast Instagram
Host:
Beth Lawrence & Company Instagram
Beth will be back each week, delivering bite-sized tips (15-minute episodes or less) on how to optimize your life and work.
Episode Transcript can be found below:
Hello. Welcome back to the Type A+ Podcast. This is the last episode of 2022. And first I wanna take a second just to thank you all for your support of my podcast. I started doing this when I was in a weird place mentally. overwhelmed with other things, but also felt like I didn't have a creative outlet.
And so to have folks really respond so amazingly to something that I'm. Really passionate and excited about has been really, really fun. If you love this podcast, the only thing I asked for for Christmas was that you subscribe, that you give it a wonderful rating and review and that you share it with folks who may like it as well.
So one of the things that I detest most is the New Year's resolution. I believe that it puts a lot of pressure on all of us to change our lives and to look at our current life with disdain and say, we haven't accomplished enough.
I'm not this enough. I'm not that enough. I didn't do enough of this year. And so what I'm prescribing is the antidote to that. I do these things at the end of the year every year, and I'm sharing them with you in the hopes that you will be able to look back and realize what a great year you had and how much you accomplished, even sometimes in spite of adversity and a lot of the negativity that we as humans go through.
The first thing that I always do is an accomplishment overview. We are so hard on ourselves, especially as type A plus people that we glaze over our accomplishments. If you had a great meeting with your boss; if you had a wonderful review at work; if you traveled to three places that you've always wanted to see, think about all the things that you wanted to do, all of the things that you placed on this year, on 2022, and then reflect on the ways that you totally nailed it.
There are so many different things that we do that are in line with our goals that are in line with the person that we wanna be that we don't even notice. So for myself, one of the things that I am actually most proud of this year is quitting my job. I am proud of that because I've never done something so bold to put myself first before, and if it wasn't for that, I don't know where my mental state would be today. I finally at 35 years old, was able to choose myself and my happiness and my peace of mind. So that is a huge accomplishment for me. But for you, journal every single thing you accomplished this year. If you walked 10,000 steps on an average day, if you bought a home, if you sold a home, if you sold even one package in your side business, one thing, Dr.
Fran, my coach always says, Celebrate the little things. We celebrate everything, so celebrate every single thing, and sometimes you'll find that you even accomplished goals that you didn't even realize you accomplished in doing this exercise. Second thing is to unsubscribe and clean your plate. So I usually do this, try to do this once a month, but it always gets pushed back at the end of the year.
Go into your inbox, and really dedicate time to unsubscribe to all of the different newsletters that somehow creep their way into your inbox that you don't use if you want the bonus. Unsubscribe. Clean your plate, clean your inbox. Go back and listen to our episode with Amanda Jefferson, who talks about mastering your inbox.
Very, very good episode and something definitely to do at the end of the year to set yourself up for success in the new year.
Along the same lines, purge that closet. I went through the other day and saw so many clothes, articles of clothing that either have been worn to tears or that are out of style or that don't fit me anymore or frankly that, you know, when I bought them at 30 years old, were a great addition to my wardrobe.
And now at 35, my situation has changed a little bit. So take inventory of what you have in your closet, what you form, and what you haven't worn is something that hasn't been in the wash in over a year. Really take inventory and decide if you wanna donate it if you want to give it to a friend or family member if you want to sell it on an entity like Poshmark.
It feels so good to clean out your closet and to make more space for what's coming.
The next item is a budget review. This is really difficult at this time of the year for folks, so obviously if this is giving you pause, just skip over this section, but it's always good to look at what money came in, what money went out from which sources, and how you did.
If you could save 10, 20, or $5 per week, that is an accomplishment. But really looking over your budget and taking inventory of, in 2022 in December, where are we today and where do we want to be? What do I need to save for? Again, if this is something that is really giving you anxiety, just skip over this part.
It's okay. I totally wholeheartedly permit you to avoid this, especially during the holiday season.
Next is journaling your favorite memories of the year. If you could take a little bit to reflect on the year and even your top five memory. , it could be something as small as going to a coffee shop and seeing a really cute little puppy when you were in the middle of doing a crazy assignment for work or spending a few minutes with your nephew or niece or son or daughter or child uninterrupted.
It's great to look over old photos as well to see all of the places you saw, see all the people you were able to interact with, and all of the people's lives you were able to touch. I love this part and a lot of folks do the top nine on Instagram or will do a year in review, Instagram reel, for example.
Really do it for yourself. Look at what you've done and what this year really has brought you.
And finally, I do look ahead to the next year. You know that I couldn't leave you without something to look ahead. So something that I did yesterday is to make a vision board. I'm a huge vision board fanatic.
When creating a vision board, take magazines, newspapers, and any sort of inspiration that you can gather from paper sources.
You can print things out on the internet. You can even draw if you'd like to, but pick out words, phrases, and images that really are drawn to you for 2023. Arrange them in a beautiful manner, either on a sketchpad, on a piece of paper, or even on an electronic item like a Pinterest board. Look at your goals for 2023.
Make sure that they're not all goals that are going to deplete you. Right? Look at the goals and say, how am I going to fill up myself? How am I gonna fill my own cup? How you wanna feel this time next year in 2023.
Do you wanna feel accomplished and proud and well-rested. Do you wanna feel like you did so much that you couldn't cram another thing into your schedule? Just sit down and think about it and picture it.
To review, this is what I do at the end of the year. I write an accomplishment, overview, I unsubscribe, clean my plate, and clean my inbox.
I purge my closet, I do a budget review. I journal my favorite memories, and then finally I do a vision board. And my wish for each of you is as you listen to this podcast, that you understand that we are all human. And that though I am a very type A person, very type A plus person when it comes to my job, my home, everything essentially.
I am actively working to give myself grace and give myself space and time, and that's really what I wish for most for each of you in this next year and in the next however long we have when you're listening to this until 2022 comes to a close. I really, really wish that you are able to rest and enjoy time with family and reflect on the fact that you made it through this insane.
Thank you so much for being with me on this journey from July until now, I can't believe all the subjects I've covered, and I'm really looking forward to next year bringing you more guest speakers, more great content, and more ways that you can be type A+ in all aspects of your life.
Happy holidays.