Friday Donuts: How are Your New Year's Resolutions?
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A fresh pack of Friday Donuts to send you off to the weekend…
🍩 What I’m reading: For my money, Sally Jenkins is the best sports columnist in the country. Her latest for the Washington Post deals with Antonio Brown, his strange outburst during last Sunday’s Bucs-Jets game and how his team failed him. Jenkins raises a great point: It's easy to be sympathetic to the mental health issues of likable athletes (Simone Biles, Naomi Osaka, Kevin Love, etc). Antonio Brown is certainly not likable, but that doesn't make his mental health issues any less legitimate.
🍩 What I’m drinking: Usually a space for alcohol, allow me to present my new protein shake as I try to start 2022 off right. I blend almond milk, vegan protein powder, a banana, a generous helping of cinnamon and a few ice cubes. No bloating dairy, lots of protein (30-plus grams), some carbs from the banana for fuel and the super-food benefits of cinnamon. Oh, and it tastes like a cinnamon sugar cookie. 😋
🍩 Sunday pick: The Patriots are 6.5-point favorites over the Dolphins in the final week of the NFL regular season. Who cares? Pick whatever you want. I’m already thinking about the offseason.
🍩 A word on New Year’s resolutions: I gotta admit, I like self-help stuff. The people I read don’t love the label “self-help” but let’s be real, that’s what it is. I like it because it’s different enough from the sports content I consume and it also helps me feel productive. In case you missed it in my 2021 review, feeling productive is sort of a requirement for me. Having said that, this week’s installment of Friday Donuts is not my attempt at self-help (I don’t love the label), but rather me sharing some of the self-help stuff I’ve consumed involving New Year’s resolutions.
I know there’s been a recent trend to be anti-res. “I set goals all year long,” these smug anti-ressers say. Don’t let them talk down to you or sway you. New Year’s resolutions are a strong way to nudge your behavior in the right direction.
One of the authors I read, Mark Manson (“The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck”), wrote this week that one is better off focusing on developing new skills than accomplishing resolutions. This was a good way to explain how I’ve been thinking about resolutions for a while. Goals are nice to have — even necessary — but not everything.
After all, if writing down one’s goals is proven to increase the chances of achieving said goal, then it makes perfect sense to get into the habit of doing that at the turn of each calendar year. As Manson wrote, “there is something psychologically significant about year changes. We divide our lives into years, conceptualize our identities in years, so it makes sense that the turning of a year will coincide with some introspection and realignment of one’s values.”
But that’s just the beginning. The How is as important (if not more important) than the What. How you reach your goal comes down to habits and skills. So ask yourself, what skills do you need to sharpen or develop, and/or what habits do you need to build, in order to have success in 2022?
For example, one of my professional goals this year is to be better at analyzing the NFL. To develop that skill, I’ll alot a certain amount of my reading time each morning to at least one NFL-related article. It’s specific, easily doable and will guarantee results.
So maybe take some time to think about your resolutions, if you haven’t already. And, if you have already, maybe take some time to rethink and reframe them: What skills could you develop that could enable you to accomplish your goals?
If you feel like sharing, I invite you to discuss your resolutions in the comments section.
Friday Donuts: How are Your New Year's Resolutions?
Friday Donuts: How are Your New Year's Resolutions?
Friday Donuts: How are Your New Year's Resolutions?
A fresh pack of Friday Donuts to send you off to the weekend…
🍩 What I’m reading: For my money, Sally Jenkins is the best sports columnist in the country. Her latest for the Washington Post deals with Antonio Brown, his strange outburst during last Sunday’s Bucs-Jets game and how his team failed him. Jenkins raises a great point: It's easy to be sympathetic to the mental health issues of likable athletes (Simone Biles, Naomi Osaka, Kevin Love, etc). Antonio Brown is certainly not likable, but that doesn't make his mental health issues any less legitimate.
🍩 What I’m drinking: Usually a space for alcohol, allow me to present my new protein shake as I try to start 2022 off right. I blend almond milk, vegan protein powder, a banana, a generous helping of cinnamon and a few ice cubes. No bloating dairy, lots of protein (30-plus grams), some carbs from the banana for fuel and the super-food benefits of cinnamon. Oh, and it tastes like a cinnamon sugar cookie. 😋
🍩 Sunday pick: The Patriots are 6.5-point favorites over the Dolphins in the final week of the NFL regular season. Who cares? Pick whatever you want. I’m already thinking about the offseason.
🍩 A word on New Year’s resolutions: I gotta admit, I like self-help stuff. The people I read don’t love the label “self-help” but let’s be real, that’s what it is. I like it because it’s different enough from the sports content I consume and it also helps me feel productive. In case you missed it in my 2021 review, feeling productive is sort of a requirement for me. Having said that, this week’s installment of Friday Donuts is not my attempt at self-help (I don’t love the label), but rather me sharing some of the self-help stuff I’ve consumed involving New Year’s resolutions.
I know there’s been a recent trend to be anti-res. “I set goals all year long,” these smug anti-ressers say. Don’t let them talk down to you or sway you. New Year’s resolutions are a strong way to nudge your behavior in the right direction.
One of the authors I read, Mark Manson (“The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck”), wrote this week that one is better off focusing on developing new skills than accomplishing resolutions. This was a good way to explain how I’ve been thinking about resolutions for a while. Goals are nice to have — even necessary — but not everything.
After all, if writing down one’s goals is proven to increase the chances of achieving said goal, then it makes perfect sense to get into the habit of doing that at the turn of each calendar year. As Manson wrote, “there is something psychologically significant about year changes. We divide our lives into years, conceptualize our identities in years, so it makes sense that the turning of a year will coincide with some introspection and realignment of one’s values.”
But that’s just the beginning. The How is as important (if not more important) than the What. How you reach your goal comes down to habits and skills. So ask yourself, what skills do you need to sharpen or develop, and/or what habits do you need to build, in order to have success in 2022?
For example, one of my professional goals this year is to be better at analyzing the NFL. To develop that skill, I’ll alot a certain amount of my reading time each morning to at least one NFL-related article. It’s specific, easily doable and will guarantee results.
So maybe take some time to think about your resolutions, if you haven’t already. And, if you have already, maybe take some time to rethink and reframe them: What skills could you develop that could enable you to accomplish your goals?
If you feel like sharing, I invite you to discuss your resolutions in the comments section.