New Year resolutions are very popular worldwide. It is not unusual to see people make lists of habits to drop, new places to visit and things to do in the New Year. From physical fitness to emotional well being, every aspect of life and sanity is always subjected to a list of dos’ and donts’ for an incoming year. Suffice it to say that most people throw these lists out the door at the end of the first month?
Obvious reasons, you don’t just decide to quit smoking and actually do. Just as you don’t just decide to quit a habit and just do. Be it a human support system, a self-help journal, a rehabilitation programme, there is a process to achieving set goals for the year and that is what most people miss when they make these resolutions.
For 2017, think of your resolutions as goals and think deeply about how to achieve them. What this helps you do is to first reset your mind from the usual annual New Year resolution list and the subconscious pattern of ditching them over the first few months.
Secondly, you have the ability to go through the process of creating patterns and working through them which in essence lays a foundation for the change you seek in such a way that you can build on those foundations over the years and find something lasting.
One of my major discoveries this year is how technology is changing the way we live, work and interact so dramatically and very quickly too. Now I can talk to my sister who lives 1,000 miles away like she was in the same location. I can chat with someone on another continent and get responses real time like we aren’t so far apart. And asides from these, I discovered I could learn anything I wanted to learn about just by asking Google!
However, you can do more with your phone, computer or tablets in 2017 by embracing technology and making use of the millions of free and paid applications that make your life easier. Social media afterall, is very time wasting and there is an app that can help you track the amount of time you spend on social media channels. See what I mean?
Learn something new on the go with apps like Coursera and Udemy. There are loads of courses to choose from and most are taught by certified lecturers from famous, credible schools around the world. While there are free courses available, you can pay for some of the courses and get certified in the end. A certificate on your LinkedIn profile from a recognised school could help you grow your network in 2017.
Dare for more and push yourself with the Momentum app on your personal computer. With this app, you can set a goal for the day, generate a to-do list for said goal, and be reminded of this once you flip your PC open or open any tabs on it. What better way to keep your goal firmly set ‘ahead’ of you?
If Facebook or Bellanaija is taking up so much of your productive time, with Site Block, you could make this history or at least reduce visits to said sites by more than 50% in 2017. This app is added as an extension to your browser and you create your blacklist of sites you would not want to spend so much time on. Site Block does the rest.
Trying to figure out how to meet more people and grow your network in 2017? Go to your app store right away, install the Eventbrite app, and then come back to this post. This year, I learnt what the saying ‘’your network is your net worth’’ meant. Why I love this app is that it categorises the nature of these events, gives you all the details you need like pricing, registration avenues, contact details, time, location etc. All you need to meet new people in 2017 is some data, the Eventbrite app and time to search out and register for relevant events.
And the list is endless. While we all can make a case against the proliferation of technology and its effects on our social lives, technology can make your life so much easier in the new year if you embrace it from the right angle. What other applications will you be using to work smart and efficiently in the new year to achieve set goals?
KOSISO UGWUEDE
