In past years, I’ve celebrated the New Year with goal setting, a look back on the year previous, or a resolution that I’m really excited about. 2016 is going to be different. Instead, I want my resolutions to be about things that I’m going to stop doing, because for whatever reason, they’re not adding anything positive or meaningful to my life.
I think sometimes we start dreaming so big and setting so many goals for ourselves that we can lose sight of some of the smaller things that we shouldn’t be doing and that, in turn, are making us unhappy. For me, that can mean trying to please others or paying too much attention to what others are doing instead of focusing on myself. For 2016, these are the 5 things I’m going to stop doing, hopefully once and for all.
5 Things I’m Going to Stop Doing in 2016
1. Over Apologizing
Now, of course if I do something wrong or hurtful, apologizing is very important. However, what I’m talking about is more of the “I’m sorry for not responding sooner…” or “I’m sorry I’m not interested in…” type of qualifying responses. If I’m busy and I don’t have time to respond to my emails, or am not interested in something, why do I need to feel bad about it?
I recently downloaded a Chrome Plugin called Just Not Sorry that I’m hopeful will help me improve my writing and communication with others by removing qualifying statements like “I’m sorry,” “I think,” and “in my opinion”. #NotSponsored, just thought it was a cool idea that I should pass along if you find yourself doing that too!
2. Dieting
It’s been awhile since I’ve truly attempted a diet (3 years ago I attempted to go Gluten Free as a New Year’s Resolution, which did teach me a lot, but isn’t something I plan to do again unless I have to for health reasons.) and I don’t want to do it again anytime soon. I toyed with the idea of the Whole 30 (I blame Instagram) but there’s no way that’s sustainable for my life. I just don’t have the time or desire to plan that much and I love food. I don’t want to have to give up some of my favorites.
Now with that said, it is not to say I don’t want to make healthier choices! I finally broke down and joined the gym with Dave and so far we’ve been going about 3 times per week. We hope to just stick to a consistent schedule more than anything else. We also have tried to make healthier swaps and choices in our meals and snacks. Instead of chips and crackers we’ve been buying hummus to eat with sweet peppers and carrots. Instead of fulfilling my Top Pot Doughnut craving yesterday, I stopped by JujuBeet and fulfilled my sweet craving with their beet juice blend. (And maybe I ate a few of my Christmas chocolates later… I will never tell!)
Speaking of, Jujubeet also offered to provide me with a certificate to provide to one of you to try out their juice or smoothies! They’re located in Seattle, Bellevue, and Redmond so if you’re local, enter on Instagram!
To Enter… {1} Like this photo so I know you want to win! 
{2} Follow me (@hellorigby) and @jujubeetjuice. Your account must be public at time of selection so I can verify! {3} Tagging friends will also earn you additional entries (but please no dummy accounts!) Sweepstakes ends one week from today, Wednesday, January 13 at 9pm PST and winner will have 48 hours to respond to my DM. Good luck! 
” src=”http://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/72×72/2764.png” scale=”0″> **Please note, this giveaway is in no way sponsored by, administered, or associated with Instagram, Inc. By entering, entrants confirm they are 13+ years of age, reside in the continental U.S., release Instagram of responsibility, and agree to Instagram’s terms of use. No purchase necessary, void where prohibited. #giveaway #jujubeet #sweepstakes #contest #healthy #juicing #smoothie #juice #sony(Don’t worry, this isn’t sponsored either! ;) I just like sharing local small businesses with you guys!)
3. Overcommitting
Maybe it was obvious, maybe it wasn’t, but last month was exhausting in terms of blog content. I had a feeling I was in for a rough month, and I slept A LOT during my time off after Christmas to make up for it. There were a lot of 3 and 4 am nights leading up to Christmas, and I’m not planning on doing that to myself again anytime soon. It was my own fault for overcommitting, and I’m going to do my best to avoid doing that to myself in 2016.
4. Oversharing
2016 was the introduction of another set of new social media profiles to maintain: Snapchat and Periscope. I still have yet to Scope, and while I think Snapchat is fun, it’s awfully time-consuming to keep up with. I remember when I first downloaded Snapchat, I started snapping everything, adding everyone, and promptly hit my data limit faster than you can say rainbow puke filter. Over the holidays, I did my best to put my phone down, only snap a few photos during the festivities, and enjoy time with friends and family. This year, I want to do that more often. Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook… it can all wait.
5. Overbuying
Eek. This is going to be the most difficult one, and it’s also the hardest to truly quantify. How much I buy, to you, may seem like a lot or a little. It’s all about perspecitve. For me, it means buying things I don’t need just because I want to have them. The gray area with this, however, is huge because as a blogger who writes about personal style and beauty, it means it’s kind of my “job” to have the latest and greatest. What things count as buying them “for the blog” versus things that I’m buying “just because” or impulsively?
While I don’t have the answers to these questions, instead of hitting the “buy it now” button immediately, I want to think longer and harder about each purchase. I want to carefully consider each purchase and not get caught up in the hype of popular collections, a big makeup release, or what the masses are buying. Wish me luck, because I’m sure going to need it.
Are you a fan of New Year’s Resolutions, or are you more of the unresolution type? I’d love to hear what you’re working on in 2016!
Overbuying is something I need to put a stop to, as well! And I love the idea of these sort of anti-resolutions. :)
Thanks Bianca! Overbuying is hard, I’m still struggling with it but I hope my urge to shop will be waning post-holiday sales.
I love your goal for not over apologizing this year! So many of us continue to over-apologize for things that aren’t our fault, and we shouldn’t feel bad about it, especially if we’re turning something down that we don’t want any part of. It also sounds like you’re well on your way to accomplishing the dieting/staying healthy goal for 2016! I’m with you that I love food too much and don’t think that I could do the Whole30, but making simple changes like swapping out crackers or chips for veggies is something that everybody can do!
Agreed Ashley! Glad you could relate. I think starting with small changes like simple swaps will lead to more long term lifestyle changes.
I love that you mention not oversharing. I think that is SO important because it can truly rule your life if you aren’t careful. I try to schedule as many social media things ahead of time that I can. I am so grateful that Facebook and Instagram (with Latergramme) offer that option. And obviously CoSchedule for blog social media stuff. That really helps!
It really does! It was nice having most everything scheduled around the holidays so I didn’t have to feel like a slave to my phone as often.
Yes to all of these! I feel like women struggle so much with all of these
Seems to be true, unfortunately!
Yes to all of these! I’m not sure I can handle overcoming all of them at once, but definitely starting small!
Definitely a good idea! I don’t think I can do all at once either but being more aware is the first step :)
I’m with you! I definitely need to stop apologizing, especially when it wasn’t my fault! I’ve never dieted, but my health goal this year is to find an exercise I enjoy because trying to lose weight is hard when you’re bored! I tried a Soul Cycle class today and it was intense, but now I know it’s not for me.
Good luck with your goals!
~Sara
Oh man, spinning is so hard! I tried a flywheel class last year and thought I was going to die. I really enjoyed hot yoga and barre classes if you haven’t tried any yet! :)
Yes to all of these! Over committing all the way, last year I signed up for too many things and just ended up overwhelmed, this year I am really trying to focus on saying yes to those things I truly want to do. Awesome goals for the new year. Happy New Year!
Happy New Year, Kaelene! Yay for being less overwhelmed in 2016 :)
These are all great! I can do this!
So glad Joanna! :)
I seriously think that all these goals are doable, Jenn! Thank you for introducing me to that Chrome extension! I think it’s going to be helpful! :D
So glad, Jae! It’s already helped me a lot when writing emails!
One of my aims for 2016 is to stop buying things that I don’t need. I wasted far too much money on coffee in the last four months of last year, so I’m planning on taking my travel mug to university instead of going to Starbucks before every lecture. Damn my university having a Starbucks on site.
I definitely could not do the whole apologise less; I am British, it’s ingrained into us from a very young age to apologise for EVERYTHING, even if it’s unnecessary or someone else’s fault.
That’s a good one – I waste far too much money at Starbucks as well! (There’s one in the building I work in too, so I feel you.)
Definitely agree on the apologizing! My mom is a chronic apologizer and I do find myself saying “I apologize…”, “in my opinion” and “I think” a lot in my communications with others which only waters down the message.
Love love love. Especially over-apologizing!
Thanks Chelsea!
love all of these. i’ve been working on the over apologising for years now but i still do it. i also try not to overshare – i have my phone set so it only works on wifi for snapchat, so its really easy for me to put my phone down when i’m out. plus, we have a low data limit lol. and over spending! seriously. i’m 12 days no shopping, going strong! it’s hard though. i feel you. i might be super late but love the new look around here!
Ah wifi only on Snapchat is so smart! I didn’t know you could do that! Yay to 12 days of no shopping! I can’t say I’m doing super well this month but I’ve definitely told myself no more often and been much more critical of items. Have to start somewhere. And no, not super late! I just updated the design over the weekend, and thank you! :)
Hi – what is the planner in the picture in this post. It is beautiful! Love this blog!!!!
Thanks so much Patti! It’s from Rifle Paper Co and is available on their website here: https://riflepaperco.com/2016-birch-floral-everyday-planner/