不一樣的新年決心

by Dan Shapley

在新年來臨之際，很多人都會(huì)許下新年決心（New Years resolution），希望在新一年里可以養(yǎng)成新習(xí)慣，完成新目標(biāo)。然而我們很多時(shí)候都會(huì)許下不切實(shí)際或空泛的愿望（如多做善事、減肥、多看書等），于是到了年底，我們會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)沒有幾個(gè)可以實(shí)現(xiàn)。不想每年都重復(fù)這樣的無用功？不妨試試每天集中精力做其中一件——這些事情要盡量簡(jiǎn)單可行哦。一周下來，也許你會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)自己取得了不少進(jìn)步呢！

The New Years 1)resolutions you keep are those that become new habits. How do you create new habits? One of the best ways is to break down your larger goals—whether thats bettering your health, as it so often is after holiday 2)binging, bettering yourself or bettering the world at large—into bite- sized guidelines and rules.

The larger goal has to be meaningful—you have to really want it—and the 3)stepwise goals have to be specific and 4)achievable. (I will lose weight by eating a healthier diet…by 5)swapping my afternoon cookie habit for the habit of an afternoon carrot.)

It can be hard to 6)tackle many goals at once, but heres one 7)strategy: 8)identify one thing to focus on each day of the week, and before long the devotion to each days goal will 9)infuse the whole weeks activities. Here are some of our favorite ideas:

Meatless Mondays

Youre 10)convinced that a 11)vegetarian diet—or at least a diet with more vegetables than the one you eat today—is healthier for you and the planet, but despite the evidence, you cant get on board with such a big change in your diet. So just go meatless on Mondays. Eating vegetarian one day a week will give you the space you need to get comfortable with new vegetarian 12)recipes, and before you know it, youll be eating more vegetarian meals throughout the week.

Trashy Tuesdays

Take a cue from New York City schools, which started Trayless Tuesdays as a way to experiment with reducing the number of 13)polystyrene 14)trays thrown out in its 15)cafeterias. Focus your attention on Tuesdays on your personal 16)waste stream—at mealtime, at home, at work, at the grocery store, at play. Just like time, waste is money. You can learn a lot about how youre wasting money, as well as energy and natural resources, if you examine what youre throwing out each day.

Why not start at home, with a DIY energy 17)audit, which will help you identify how youre wasting energy so you can spend a future Tuesday 18)weatherizing your home.

19)Wacky Wednesdays

Maybe you love the idea of DIY creativity and 20)selfsufficiency, but struggle to find the time to start and complete new projects. The solution? Set aside a couple of hours every week to give yourself the time to create. Whether youre making gifts, turning trash into crafts or taking all the rubbish out of your home to 21)boost its value and efficiency, the key 22)ingredient of success is time.

Thankful Thursdays

So much of lifes 23)anxieties—especially when it comes to goal-setting—is focused on what were not doing well, and what were not doing right. Take the time once a week to relax and 24)appreciate what you have. Spend time with family or friends, write a letter—or reflect on all the progress youre making on those other resolutions.

Fruitful Fridays

Did you know that three-quarters of Americans dont eat enough fruits and vegetables? At a minimum, U.S. 25)health agencies 26)recommend eating three 27)servings of vegetables and two servings of fruit every day. Even if you are in the minority of Americans that achieves this goal, it cant hurt to 28)diversify with new fruits and vegetables that have different 29)phytonutrients. So make Fridays a day to try a new fruit or vegetable—and make it a fresh seasonal fruit or vegetable whenever possible for the best flavor and nutritional value.

Get Outside Saturdays

Most of us start the New Year with some sort of exercise goal—whether its hitting the floor for some pushups, or the gym for a daily 30)workout. But for those of us who have tried and failed to make exercise a part of our routines, a big problem is 31)fatigue—not physical fatigue, but 32)mental. The 33)treadmill isnt any more exciting on Saturday than it was on Friday. So start an exercise 34)regimen, or spice up your existing routine, with a regular workout outdoors. Whether its biking on a new rail trail注1, hiking at a forest preserve or ice skating on a local pond, adding an element of exploration to your week will deepen your connection with the outdoors while improving your health—naturally.

Good Samaritan注2 Sundays

35)Generosity takes practice, just like anything else. Make good works a habit by doing one new good deed once a week. Maybe its volunteering (or planning a volunteer vacation), donating money (or even cell phones, clothes or other items) or just lending a hand to a neighbor. Whatever it is, you can make doing good a habit in 2013 by doing one good deed once a week.

在你許下的新年決心當(dāng)中，能堅(jiān)持下去的就會(huì)成為你的新習(xí)慣。你要如何培養(yǎng)新的習(xí)慣呢？其中一個(gè)最好的方法就是把你的大目標(biāo)化整為零——無論是改善你的健康（經(jīng)常出現(xiàn)在節(jié)假日暴飲暴食之后），還是自我提升，或是讓世界更美好——把這樣的大目標(biāo)分成每次一小口的各種方針和守則。

大的目標(biāo)要有意義，你真心實(shí)意地想實(shí)現(xiàn)它；分步的小目標(biāo)則要具體化，而且是可以達(dá)成的。（比如，我要通過健康飲食進(jìn)行減肥，方法是把下午吃曲奇餅的習(xí)慣換成吃胡蘿卜。）

同時(shí)應(yīng)付多個(gè)目標(biāo)，確實(shí)不太好辦。不過我們有一個(gè)策略：為一個(gè)星期的每一天分別確定一個(gè)焦點(diǎn)。不久以后，這種對(duì)每日目標(biāo)的專注便會(huì)貫穿到整個(gè)星期的活動(dòng)當(dāng)中。以下是我們最喜歡的一些想法：

星期一——禁肉日

你相信素食——或者至少是比你現(xiàn)在的餐單含有更多蔬菜的食譜——對(duì)你自身以及地球而言都更有益處。盡管證據(jù)確鑿，但要一下子對(duì)飲食做出如此巨大的改變，你還是無法付諸行動(dòng)。所以，只在星期一不吃肉吧。每個(gè)星期吃一天素食，這能讓你慢慢適應(yīng)新的素食食譜。你一周吃素食的次數(shù)還會(huì)在不知不覺中增加呢。

星期二——環(huán)保日

從紐約的學(xué)校獲取一點(diǎn)靈感吧——它們啟動(dòng)了“無托盤星期二”，試圖以此減少食堂丟棄的聚苯乙烯托盤的數(shù)量。每逢周二，你可以關(guān)注個(gè)人垃圾的情況，包括在吃飯、在家、工作、在雜貨店和玩耍的時(shí)候等等。時(shí)間就是金錢，廢品也一樣。仔細(xì)檢查一下你每天扔掉的東西，你就更清楚自己是怎樣浪費(fèi)金錢、能源和自然資源的。

不妨從家里開始——自己動(dòng)手做個(gè)能源評(píng)估，從而幫你看清浪費(fèi)能源的狀況。在以后的某個(gè)星期二，你就可以給自己家安裝調(diào)節(jié)室溫的設(shè)備了。

星期三——?jiǎng)?chuàng)造日

也許你喜歡創(chuàng)意DIY和自給自足，但很難騰出時(shí)間去開始和完成新項(xiàng)目。怎么辦呢？每周預(yù)留幾個(gè)小時(shí)，給自己足夠的時(shí)間去創(chuàng)造吧。無論你是制作禮物，還是用廢品制作工藝品，或是清理家中垃圾，以提高房子的價(jià)值和實(shí)用性——時(shí)間都是成功的關(guān)鍵因素。

星期四——感恩日

生活中有如此多的憂慮——尤其是與設(shè)定目標(biāo)有關(guān)的憂慮——都是集中在我們做得不夠好、不正確的事情上。每周找一點(diǎn)時(shí)間讓自己放松下來，為你所擁有的心懷感激。找時(shí)間陪伴親友，寫一封信，或者是想想你的其他新年決心都取得了怎樣的進(jìn)展。

星期五——蔬果日

你知道嗎？四分之三的美國人的蔬果攝入量不足。美國衛(wèi)生機(jī)構(gòu)建議每天至少要吃三份蔬菜和兩份水果。即使你是達(dá)到這一標(biāo)準(zhǔn)的少數(shù)美國人之一，增加含有不同植物營(yíng)養(yǎng)素的果蔬品種也是百利而無一害的。就把周五定為嘗試新品種蔬果的日子吧——盡可能選擇新鮮的時(shí)令蔬果，因?yàn)樗鼈兊目谖逗蜖I(yíng)養(yǎng)價(jià)值都是最好的。

星期六——戶外日

新年伊始，我們大多數(shù)人都會(huì)制定某種運(yùn)動(dòng)目標(biāo)——在地板上苦練俯臥撐，或是每天堅(jiān)持到健身房鍛煉等等。不過，有些人雖然努力想把運(yùn)動(dòng)融入到日常習(xí)慣當(dāng)中，卻沒有成功，其中一個(gè)重要原因是倦態(tài)——不是身體上的疲倦，而是精神上的疲倦。星期六的跑步機(jī)并不比星期五更有魅力。把定期戶外鍛煉作為新運(yùn)動(dòng)計(jì)劃的起點(diǎn)吧，或只是為現(xiàn)有的例行運(yùn)動(dòng)增添一些樂趣。為每個(gè)星期增加一點(diǎn)探險(xiǎn)元素——你可以沿著新的鐵路步道騎行，在森林保護(hù)區(qū)遠(yuǎn)足，或者在當(dāng)?shù)氐某靥亮锉@些都能加深你與戶外的聯(lián)系，又能“自然”地改善你的健康。

星期天——行善日

和其他任何事情一樣，樂善好施也需要實(shí)踐。每個(gè)星期做一件不同的好事，將善行變成習(xí)慣。這些好事可以是當(dāng)志愿者（或是計(jì)劃一次義工旅行）、捐錢（或捐手機(jī)、衣物或其他物品），或者只是向鄰居伸出援手。不管是什么事情，你都可以通過每個(gè)星期做一件好事，讓行善成為2013年的新習(xí)慣。