Make These Part Of Your New Year’s Resolution For 2019

Want to be happier and healthier this year? Make 2019 count with these tips

With each passing year, New Year’s resolutions have become a sort of cliché. But why do we still indulge in making these lists? On one hand, it gives us hope that the new year will be a better one, and that we are taking steps to improve ourselves. On the other, they can be a jab to our ego when we fail to follow through. Pro-tip: It all boils down to setting realistic goals and achieving them with baby steps, instead of building castles in the sky. Here are five achievable New Year’s resolutions—from managing your wealth to improving your health—with tips on how to make them happen.

Take charge of your finances

Have you been on top of your finances in 2018? With the new year, take the opportunity to evaluate your financial mistakes in the yesteryear, set new goals for your financial portfolio, and take steps to achieve them in 2019. Perhaps you haven’t made very wise investments last year, or have been too lavish with your personal spending. Why not find one solution to all your wealth management needs?

Citibank International Personal Bank (IPB) offers a Global Account that opens doors for your wealth management, wealth accumulation and legacy planning needs, in the stable political and financial climate of Singapore. The multi-currency account allows you to save in up to ten currencies of your choice with attractive interest rates and offers effortless global funds transfer between Citibank accounts with no additional fees.

You can rebalance your investment portfolio with your dedicated relationship manager, who can offer solutions to align it with current market conditions, including short-term trading options like foreign exchange trading, and long-term investments like mutual funds and bonds investment. Monitor your financial growth with Total Wealth Advisor, and make informed decisions with market updates from Citi Wealth Insights and reports specially created for you.

Perhaps it isn’t that difficult to keep to your financial resolutions after all.

Eating clean

Before you get flashbacks of failed attempts to eat healthy in yesteryears, we are not talking a complete overhaul of your diet. Start small with the little things, like staying hydrated with eight glasses of water a day, adding more colour to your meals with fruits and vegetables, , and getting a good balance of proteins, carbohydrates and fats. Reward yourself with the occasional cup of latte or a glass of wine—cheat days help to prevent a major rebound.

If you are ready to take eating well to the next level, consider engaging a dietician or nutritionist. He or she will be able to recommend diets that are suitable for your lifestyle and health goals. The ketogenic diet and intermittent fasting are popular options to consider for weight control, with positive effects on blood sugar, cholesterol and blood pressure. Some nutritionists even provide meal subscription services, perfect for city-dwellers who are simply too busy.

Commit to an active lifestyle

Keeping to an exercise regime is perhaps the most common resolution on everybody’s list, and also the one everyone tends to fail at—just look at how empty the gym is by February. Jumping into an unrealistic goal only causes disappointment, which can discourage you from following through.

Instead of signing up for a gym membership on impulse, set measurable fitness milestones that you want to achieve, and find the most enjoyable way to reach it. Perhaps you prefer barre to spin classes, or boxing to weight-lifting. The key is to have fun so you actually look forward to your sessions. Consider registering for fitness subscription apps like GuavaPass or ClassPass, which allows you to try out different activities without having to commit to a long-term package.

Stimulate your mind with books

How many books did you read in 2018? With viral videos and “fake news” shoved in our faces everyday, it can be easy to forget the old-school joys of curling up with a good novel. Whether you enjoy fiction or non-fiction, reading has been scientifically proven to boast positive benefits, such as imparting new knowledge and stimulating your brain—Elon Musk is famously known to have taught himself rocket science through textbooks—as well as improving your imagination, memory, and concentration.

Prefer to go paperless? Kindle Unlimited gives you access to over 1.4 million eBook titles. Starved for time? Audible has the largest collection of over 425,000 audiobooks and original content that you can listen to during commute or while you workout.

Balance your work and personal life

Spending eight hours at work, then eight hours for personal time, and finally eight hours of sleep—this may be what comes to mind when we think of work life balance, but the perfect balance is a myth. Instead, strive to achieve harmony by defining your own balance.

If spending long hours at your job fulfils you, do so by all means. However, understand that taking time away from your work is essential to help increase your productivity, and spark creativity that you can’t find sitting at your desk. Even taking as little as 15 minutes to meditate everyday can improve your mental wellness. Chris O’Neill, CEO of Evernote uses the meditation app Headspace to help clear his mind.

Perhaps you prioritise family time out of the office. In which case, be firm about your personal priorities and don’t compromise on spending time with your loved ones. YouTube’s Susan Wojciki makes sure that she’s home for dinner by 6.pm every night to have dinner with her family, and Ernst & Young’s CEO Mark Weinberger once skipped the World Economic Forum to help his daughter move into her college dorm.

What is your goal for 2019? Is it adopting healthier living habits, or making more financially-savvy decisions? Whichever resolutions you choose to adopt this year, here’s to a spectacular 2019.

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