This post is pretty text-heavy, so I’ve spaced out the sentences to make it easier on the eyes and added a few stock photos to break it up. It’s basically a collection of notes from my phone, just organized by topic. I wrote this for me so I can refer back to it. Last year I did a full closet declutter and this year I'm embarking on a full house declutter. My home is small so the more empty space I have, the bigger it will feel. As a gift to myself for doing this, I will reward my home with an indoor faux tree plant.

I picked up Atomic Habits thinking it would be just another self-help book. What I found was something far more useful and practical. It is absolutely life-changing. I’ve read a lot of self-help books, and this is probably the most substantial and impactful one, with the most tangible takeaways you can actually apply to your life. If you’re going to read one book, it should be this one.

This book is completely centered around the idea of getting 1% better every single day. It isn’t about big, dramatic changes. It’s about small actions that slowly, quietly change the way you live.

One of the first ideas that stood out to me was this: action relieves anxiety. When you move, even a little, fear shrinks. Waiting makes everything heavier. Starting makes it lighter. When you procrastinate on something important, you’re delaying a better future. You’re postponing results that could make you proud.

Clear also explains that the secret to winning isn’t avoiding failure. It’s learning how to recover. Resilience is the real advantage. When you know how to bounce back, setbacks stop feeling final.

Word for the year: Rejuvenate

All of my goals run through one question: does this help me feel more rested, more creative, more grounded, more myself? I asked myself, based on my current life, energy, and values, what should I stop focusing on this year, what should I protect, and what deserves my consistent attention?

Rejuvenate is about less input, but better input. Fewer distractions, higher quality habits. Refinement over addition. Not less living. Less junk. Not deprivation. More discernment. Trying to find joy outside of the algorithm. 

We tend to put far too much pressure on January to fix everything at once. New routines, more discipline, better habits, a whole new life, all expected to click the moment the calendar turns. When it feels slower or messier than that, it’s easy to assume we’re already behind.

Starting goals or setting new intentions on January 1 has never really made sense to me. It’s still a time for rest and recovery. I prefer to sit with things throughout the month, giving myself space to reflect before deciding how I want to shape the year. For me, January is a reset month, a chance to get organized and clear out mental and financial noise before building more discipline going forward.

Every year I like to make a list to guide how I approach the next 12 months. In the past, I’ve done things like Lucky Girl Syndrome Affirmations, My Ins and Outs for 2025, 25 Ways to Glow Up in 2025, the 30 Wears Challenge, and 7 Travel Resolutions.  This year I’m focusing on My Consumption Rules for 2026. The theme is simple: buy less and buy better. I am creating a traditional New Years Goal list but I always take some time at the beginning of the year to create it. 

Even though the year is almost over, December can be one of the best times to set goals. I want this month to feel intentional. It’s a natural moment to reflect, reset, and make small changes before the new year begins. Instead of holding everything until January, starting with tiny goals now creates a bit of momentum and helps the new year feel less chaotic. December can feel like it's impossible to do anything positive for your goals with all the cookies and eggnog, but you don't need a perfect month, it's not all or nothing.

The cold weather in winter can make me feel a little slower, so I’ve been thinking about ways to stay focused while also enjoying the season. I decorated for Christmas early so I wouldn't dread the cold season; instead I made the season feel more inviting. With all of that in mind, I’ve broken my December goals into micro habits across four areas: fitness, career, mental health, and discipline. Studies show that people who write down their goals are more likely to reach them, so I’m putting mine on paper and letting the season support the pace I want.

Harpers Bazaar explained that Lucky Girl Syndrome encourages individuals to repeatedly affirm their good fortune to manifest positive outcomes like promotions or pay raises.  While some see it as a form of toxic positivity , the author recommends the WOOP approach - Wish, Outcome, Obstacle, Plan, which incorporates realistic planning and anticipation of challenges. 

Remember years ago when we all read the book The Secret  which taught us that us about the law of attraction and how you can make anything you want happen if you believe in it enough. Lucky Girl Syndrome Affirmations is all about reprogramming your mindset into thinking I am good enough, smart enough, capable enough and worthy of all my desires. You have to believe you can do anything because that thought will create your reality. When you’re operating on a frequency of having high gratitude, more things will just flow into your life. Here are the affirmations I have for myself that promote abundance, ease, and good luck. Write yours in the present tense. 

Everyone is making these lists and I love them. They feel like a low-stakes way to to set some soft goals (and anti-goals) for the year. Below are my what to leave in 2024 with little or no explanation. 2025 is going to be our best year yet!

Here are 25 powerful steps to help you glow up in 2025 and become the best version of yourself. This is your path to manifesting everything you desire in life. Commit to the plan—don’t wait for the perfect mood. Waiting to feel "ready" or "motivated" only leads to inconsistency and missed goals. Instead, take action, even when you don’t feel like it. Procrastination will keep you stuck in the same cycle of unfulfilled goals year after year. Stop waiting for the right moment. Your progress starts now, even if it’s not perfect. Focus on starting, not timing. Embrace challenges—they are the stepping stones to growth.

Your habits shape who you are, and small actions compound to create the person you become. Plan your days, structure your weeks, and make every moment count. Health is wealth—your body is your most valuable asset, so take care of it. Your style, hair, and makeup are extensions of your self-expression—experimenting with your appearance can be a powerful motivator. Personally, I love the fresh start that comes with the new year—it's a chance to reset, recharge, and refocus. Set new goals, rebuild better habits, and create a solid foundation for the year ahead.

Happy New Year! Happy 2024. I am so looking forward to this new year and all the exciting things its going to be bringing. If you want 2024 to be different from 2023, set goals for yourself and implement a plan to get there. Change is good, it helps us grow and evolve. Resolutions are all about reinventing yourself which is just improving and upgrading yourself.  I do not want to be the exact same person I was 5 years ago. Don't make your goals too big, break them up into smaller steps to make it easier to achieve. Here are some questions to ask yourself when creating your goals: 

What characteristics does the best version of myself have?

What routine does the best version of myself follow?

What activities does the best version of myself often do?

Did you know that people who write down their goals are 20% more successful in accomplishing them than those who don't?  If you want to reinvent yourself  you can 100% do it! 

There's a different way you could also do your resolutions. Instead of doing big new years resolutions for the whole year,  you can have a new years resolution for each month so it doesn't feel super overwhelming at the beginning of the year trying to accomplish a bunch of goals at once. So for instance you can do a No Buy January (no coffee out, no new clothes, no takeout, no new makeup unless its empty, no new candles (you bought plenty of Christmas candles), use canned goods before buying more, bring lunch to work). I do Dry January every year and some people do veganuary.  Think of it as a 2024 reset guide to rethink ways to reach your goals with a different approach. Get in your hot girl walks while listening to podcasts, try new hobbies, take your magnesium and do yoga before bed. 

My closet is so full I've run out of hangers and I'm not buying any more. I want to purge and declutter and that's my number one goal. I want to make 2024 the year of organization and cleanliness.  

Happy New Year! It's officially 2022 and we've survived season 2 of the pandemic but sadly we're onto season 3. First things first, let's leave behind the word cheugy in 2021 and I predict that 2022 is going to be the year of the Espresso Martini! lol My 2022 planner is in the mail because I bought it late, but I have all the stickers ready. I also love to write monthly goals in my planner. I am doing Dry January again this year. I know a lot of people choose a word of the year to encompass all that they want to embody throughout the year. However, I couldn't pick one, but these were my finalists for Word of the Year: discipline, consistency, unstoppable, grateful, adapt, positivity, abundance, glow, surrender. 

art by Daria Rosen

My head space is very emotional being in the epicenter in Washington, DC and witnessing everything. Black people deserve love and respect. The protests aren't new, it's just that everything has been recorded on iphones in the last 5 years so now everyone is forced to see what Black people have always known has been happening. Racial violence is not political, it's a public health problem. The system has always been broken with little to no change. How many marches have their been since MLK's March on Washington? I've spent the last two weeks sad and heartbroken over race relations in our country. This blog has always had posts on finding a deeper meaning in life so I wanted to share some resources about this human issue and how you can be an ally and advocate to the Black community. 

Every year I make the usual resolution about losing weight that never happens so instead this year  I made a fun list of travel goals that I have for myself. I feel that writing them down makes a big difference because it makes it more concrete and it's something I can look to hold myself accountable to make sure I achieve this list.  I want to consume less and instead focus on spending money on experiences and travel, not things/clothes. I’ve been fortunate to have traveled to some really amazing places already  (and never cared about a passport stamp or will add the number to my IG bio as some badge of honor) so my goal is to continue that journey of quality travel experiences.

I feel that writing them down makes a big difference because it makes it more concrete and it's something I can look back at to hold myself accountable to make sure I'm still on track.  I just completed a workshop on Vision Board planning so I’m finally ready to write down my goals.

Tara Mohr is on a mission to help women speak up and influence the world with their voice. Mohr is a personal coach who helps many women step up in life to find their calling. It’s best described as a personal development book for women in the workplace, but I don’t mean creating large business plans. This useful book is life-changing and really resonated with me! My copy of the book is filled with post-it flags of key parts that I want to refer back to. The message of this book will challenge you to think differently. Tara offers reasons women may choose to hold ourselves back, which is why so many of us are not playing big. The book is all about how to thrive as a woman and some specific skills and mindsets to create a fulfilling life. I've found many of the concepts to be helpful as it is encouraging to trust and believe in yourselves. The tangible advice and insights I most appreciated were the communication tips and how to unhook from praise and criticism. Let’s talk about some of her practical advice.

Olympic Skier Lindsey Vonn wrote an inspiring new book on getting healthier with fitness and clean eating. The book is just 256 pages and divided up into three sections: memoir, diet and exercise. One fourth of the book are pictures of workout circuits. The autobiographical section of this book was only a few pages unfortunately. No dirt on her 3 year relationship with Tiger Woods. The nutrition section is very practical, favoring clean eating over dieting. She says she’s done every diet out there and has finally figured out what gives her energy for her long grueling days. I have so much respect for her now that I know her story and understand how hard she works. This small-town Minnesota girl also talks about loving your body.

Every year I make the stereotypical resolutions like lose weight that end up being too lofty and I just set myself up for failure. So why do I always do that? This year I decided to do something a little different for myself and make resolutions that are more reasonable to achieve and actually fun to do. Doing away with the unrealistic goals, I came up with little goals that are not impossible to achieve. I feel that writing them down makes a big difference because it makes it more concrete and it's something I can look back at to hold myself accountable to make sure I'm still on track. I'm excited to report that I met all of my Style Resolutions and Blog Goals from last year.

I wrote my personal resolutions and goals for 2016 and I thought why not set some for TheBlondissima. I think setting goals and making lists of things you want to achieve is so important as it keeps you on track and keeps you motivated. I already stay pretty organized by keeping an editorial calendar of topics I want to to discuss. I'm a planner addict and this blog calendar is what keeps me consistent with producing content so I won't disappear on my readers.

I loved Brian Tracy's book Eat That Frog so  I had to read another book of his. He says that all you do need to succeed in any of your life goals is self-discipline. The book shows you how you can achieve success in all three major areas of your life:  
1. Your personal goals.
2. Your business and money goals.
3. Your overall happiness.

Each chapter in this book shows you how to be more disciplined in one aspect of your life. With these guidelines, you can learn how to be more successful in everything you do because a little self-discipline goes a long way. Here are my favorite quotes from the book.

"It's quite common for many people, when they are unhappy or frustrated for any reason, to go shopping. They unconsciously associate buying something with being happy. They buy lots of things they don't particularly need because they unconsciously associate spending with happiness."

I read the most inspiring book last week and have to say that this kick ass book is a total game-changer! The author published this classic in 1959 and it continues to remain relevant and something I should probably read every year.  I would recommend this book to anyone who is wants more out of life in terms of career growth and relationships because it holds the power to transform your mindset in your life. It’s a manual for success by building confidence in yourself because typically a person's thinking is always in the process of becoming small and marginalizing itself. The book is a powerful reminder of the great things that can be accomplished with the right attitude so I found it a very effective motivational tool. This is an absolute must read in how to create a success plan in life. The best part is he summarizes the main points at the end of every chapter. Here are some excerpts I found insightful:

"Blaming others is destructive. You gain absolutely nothing from "proving" that someone else is wrong. Have the courage to be your own constructive critic. Seek out your faults and weaknesses and then correct them."