New Year’s Resolutions 2021

Whether you love or hate New Year’s Resolutions, it is finally that time of year. For as long as I can remember I’ve always made at least 5 Resolutions each year, but I can’t tell you whether I managed to keep them or not. On January 22nd, it is the one year anniversary of opening this business and I think that is definitely one of my favourite accomplishments that have came out of 2020. Other than that and a few personal things, not much else happened during the year, and I won’t be sad to see the end of it as I’m sure many of you understand.

This year I’d like to make some more resolutions that I’m going to share with you all in the hope that one year from now I can read back and reflect on whether I managed to achieve them and I will use this post to share some ideas and tips for setting your own resolutions.

1. Read and Write at least Once a Month.

As some of you may already know I am a bit of a bookaholic but most recently I’ve found myself down a rabbit hole of not being able to read that I haven’t managed to get out of. So I’m setting myself the challenge of reading 12 books minimum in 2021, but with the exception that I am going to read all of those pet related books I’ve not managed to make time for starting with A Street Cat Named Bob by James Bowen. You can follow my Goodreads to keep up to date with my 2021 reading journey. I am also going to attempt to post at least 12 new blog posts on this blog.

2. Spend more 1 on 1 time with my Pets.

Having multiple pets is wonderful but I often question how much 1 on 1 time my pets get with me, for example, my youngest cat Aurora really enjoys playing and the moment a toy comes out she tends to hog it meaning my elder cat Milo doesn’t get a play. So in 2021 I am going to spend more of my time having quality time with each of them. It can be incredibly difficult with having predator and prey animals in one home, for example, I can not hold my snake when my cats are around as it could be potentially dangerous for the snake and I would not want to ever put him in harms way. Each day of the week, I will designate 1 hour of quality time with each of my pets.

3. Finish my Driving Lessons.

Admittedly my job is very hard without having a car. I’m constantly struggling from getting from job A to job B etc. Passing my test and getting a car will make my job so much easier and help me to continue to grow this business. I’m not going to hold myself too much to this resolution as it depends on other factors like money and time.

4. Volunteer at my Local Animal Shelter.

Pre-COVID I really wanted to volunteer at my local animal shelter but wasn’t sure how to go about it. Then COVID broke out and they have been no longer taking on new volunteers. 2020 has been a really hard year for many charities and shelters which help out animals. There is more of a ‘supply and demand’ on Cats and Dogs since March 2020 as many people have been wanting ‘lockdown pets’, the outcome of this has meant a lot of pets being brought into shelters as the owner has then realised they cannot care for that animal. I’m hoping that the shelters will soon be taking on new volunteers and that I can do my part to help out even if it’s only 1 hour a week, every little helps. If I am unable to do this I would like to fundraise instead to help some of the animal charities.

5. Enjoy the small moments in life and spread happiness.

This may sound really cheesy but during 2020, I realised how even the small moments in life that seem insignificant are much more meaningful. This year I would like to continue to notice and appreciate the small pleasures of life and spread happiness by trying to do something which can make someone else feel good about themselves. Such as compliments, a small gift, a smile and letting someone know how special you are to them.

I was reading Your Cat magazine last week when I came across a great article which was called ’10 New Years Resolutions your cat wants you to make.’ It was a very interesting read, I would recommend you give it a read if you can.

When picking your own New Years Resolutions remember to be realistic. If you set unrealistic goals you will more than likely not stick to them and end up disheartened. For example, if you wanted to join a gym and go regularly, you may realise that in actual fact you don’t have enough time for the gym or not enough money. You could try setting a more realistic goal such as working out at home in your free time.

Some people find it easier to set small regular goals as they are easier to achieve and keep working towards the big end goal by breaking it down into steps. For example, I will be doing this when thinking about passing my driving test, as I plan on passing my theory first, then moving onto lessons after I have passed my theory. This makes my goal of getting my driving licence more achievable and I can feel accomplished on each step of the way there.

No matter what your resolutions are in 2021, I wish you all the best and I should be back in a few weeks with a new post if I can manage to stick to my first resolution!