A New Year, A New Cycle, A New You

Good afternoon everyone! It is great to be back into the blogging scene for the New Year! So many accomplishments have occurred within the year 2013 and the year 2014 is going to prove to be even better! Hopefully I will be able to stick with blogging and continually share my thoughts with you guys throughout the year as one of my resolutions. But, what is a New Year’s resolution and what is so special about them?

                New Year’s resolutions, as most of you already know, are ideas or goals which we set for ourselves to stick to or accomplish throughout the year. Most people find setting resolutions give them the motivation to be a better person or better some part of themselves which they think is a bad quality, characteristic or whatever. However, others oppose the concept of resolutions because they say that if you wish to change something about yourself you shouldn’t have to wait until a New Year starts. Time keeps going no matter what the number on the calendar says.  If you want to change something do it right there and then.

                Personally, I agree with those thoughts. Why should you have to change when a New Year starts and not right there and then? A possible answer can be in regards to measurement.  You start with day one and you go from there. For example when people do thirty day challenges they start on day one of a month. So for New Year’s resolutions they start with day one of the year.  It all depends on the person I suppose. Although, I do stand firm that if you wish to change something about yourself, just do it. Figure out a way to make it happen and follow through with it with all your might.

                So now you might be wondering, why do I have resolutions if I hold that belief? Honestly it is because I didn’t have the motivation to change myself right there and then. I let my sorrows and self-loathing get the best of me. But seeing that it is a new year somewhat gave me hope for a new beginning. The cycle has begun anew and I must follow suite with changing myself within my own life cycle. 

                Now, what are my resolutions for the 2014 cycle? First off, I want to be more assertive. Not just with my attitude but mainly with my decisions. I can be indecisive and I second guess myself. I want to be able to find what will make me happy and go with that decision. I also want to disregard the assumptions of what other people will think of me when I make those decisions. People will judge regardless of the good or bad you commit. So why bother caring what other people will think of you? Lastly, I want to be the best me that I can be. I want to be able to know what makes me unique and distinctive and strong and continually use those strengths to shape, mold, and create me as my life presses on. 

                Many of us are grown to hearing about being your own person. Do what you want and such and such. Yet, most people which I speak to do not even think about what makes them unique. To be your own person, you must live by your own rules, your own style, and your own sense of life. Most people don’t know what they love, what they love to do or even what they’re good at. I feel like you should always know what you’re strengths are because that is what will lead you through life. That is a resolution which I hope my fellow readers can take a gander at this year. 

Here are some questions to get you started:

                What makes you awesome? What makes you unique? What is it that you like that the next person does not like? What are you good at? What do you like to do when you’re bored? What do you like to do to put a smile on your face? 

                These, plus a ton of other questions are essential to finding out the person you are.  I know I might have left the discussion of resolutions but I feel like this is connected. Resolutions are made to better yourself right? So by answering these questions you’re finding out who you are which in turn is bettering your life. Therefore, you can make decisions based on what you like and what you want and not what the world wants. So, these questions are not meant to be a manual but as a guide to help you find out what makes you special. Why and how are you an individual in this world? 

                I hope all of my readers find this post somewhat helpful as you all enter into this fresh New Year with your hopes and dreams. Always seek Peace, Harmony, and Tranquility. Good luck on your resolutions this year and let me know how everything goes! I would absolutely love to hear everything!

Do You Know Where Your World Comes From?

This has been bugging me for quite some time now. I notice it all the time and it has been increasing gradually everyday. I hear it on the radio, see it on television, and watch it in everyday life between the interactions with the various people I encounter. What I am noticing is the ever growing comparison of people's lives and knowledge to negative influences of popular culture and mass media sources.

Our paradigms, or worldview, are shaped from the time we exit from the womb. Every experience, every interaction, every bit of everything influences our sense of self and our sense of the world. However, there is a critical point in our life where outside influences don't hit you "as much" as they would. This point, to some people, is when you reach a level of adulthood. So outside influences must get you when you're most vulnerable, as children.

I work at a high school where many ideologies are formed and burned into the consciousness of your everyday citizen. High school, mainly, structures you for what you will be as you grow into a law-abiding citizen. However, as I stroll the hallways performing my duties, I notice the conversations between today's youth and it completely astounds me what they do in their lives, how they portray themselves to the world, and how they treat people.


Like I said before, most of our morals, ethics, and identity come from our day to day influences. So where are your kids getting their influences from? Many things influence them; yet some, in my opinion, should not taken lightly such as the radio and television.

Radio and television are sources where pop culture is displayed. What pop culture teaches us that in order to fit in with the "crowd", you must look like this, act like this, behave like this, but mainly THINK like this. Pop culture wants you to think they way they want you to think. Why? Nobody will ever know the real answer to that, unless you're the driver of the pop culture train.

So take this into account with your life. Do you watch a lot of television? Do you listen to a lot of radio stations? But most importantly, do you get most of what you believe to be real from these sources? Really think about what you find to be "real" and see whether or not they compare to what you listen and hear. You might surprise yourself.