Honestly, the traditional idea of New Year’s resolutions are a set up. Their typical extremes {go to the gym seven days a week! Cut out all fat, sugar, coffee, alcohol, stop shopping entirely} don’t lend themselves to success. We enter into these grand promises with sky-high expectations, only to get sucked back into the daily grind and wondering what the heck we’d resolved to do in the first place!

It’s simple. New Year’s Resolutions never work. Studies are out there to prove it. So, screw ’em! Everyone thinks that if they write a list of things they wish to change this year, it’ll force them to be better, when in reality, a list of resolutions often proves to be void of one big thing: any real solutions. So this year I said no more. No more definitive declarations of an idealized way to live. Maybe it’s age {and hopefully a touch of wisdom!} setting in, but this year instead of creating a stress-hole of a list that’ll just linger over my head for the first couple of months until I forget about them, I’ve decided to make little, tangible changes this year!

You can create small, yet impactful opportunities that allow you to start fresh with better habits and feel good about the year ahead. I’m confident checking some of these things off my list will make me feel so much more accomplished than any life-changing overhaul. Even if we’re just talking cleaning out my underwear drawer. Do you know how amazing it would feel to purge just one drawer?! So good! Because the truth is, small practical achievements make a world of a difference on your day-to-day life.

Here are a few ideas currently atop my 2015 to-do list!

Things To Do in The New Year That’ll Make You Feel WAY More Accomplished Than Any Resolution: 

> Schedule lunch with someone who you didn’t see last quarter and here is the most foreign sounding part of it all: don’t cancel.

> Don’t start a new book! Yep, that’s right, one of the most popular resolutions to “read more” is null and void. Just finish the one that you haven’t cracked open in weeks and is still staring at you on your nightstand! You’ll feel way better finishing one book, rather than five. {or do what I do and buy the Sunday New York Times to least jumpstart your reading bug}

> Clean out one clothes drawer in your dresser. Just one at a time- anything else is too daunting, meaning you’ll NEVER do it. Start with your underwear drawer- throwing out oldies and replacing them with goodies will make you feel like a new woman!

> Make your bed. Ready, set, go! Throw your bed sheets in the washer, iron them on their way out and spray them with your favorite, luxurious scent…even if you only make your bed once this month, it’ll be a memorable hop in the sack!

> Take SOMETHING to the tailor. Instead of buying a new top, take that one item in your closet that has been bothering you for-ev-er – that one top you love, but never wear because the neck swoops too low and it’s SO annoying because you’re constantly checking it to make sure your bra isn’t showing – and get that thang fixed. $10, never better spent!

> Do one random act of kindness. Reach out to a friend you haven’t talked to in ages {and this means call or text or email – really any communication counts – no judgement you aren’t penning a hand-made note card with calligraphy for the address- who has time for that?!} and tell them why you so appreciate them. Plunk a quarter in an about-to-expire parking meter. Buy a coworker a cup of coffee without asking

> Don’t buy snack food this month. It’s not a diet overhaul or a strict pledge to abstain from all things tasty. Just skip the chips, crackers and the rest of the pre-made stuff at the grocery store. If they’re not in your pantry, you can’t eat ’em! You’ll be amazed at the difference one tiny change can make.

> Call your mom. Cuz you should really always call your mom.

The great thing about these little to-do’s? You can switch ’em up monthly, even weekly if your heart desires. The important thing is taking the five minutes you need to think “what do I want to do differently right now?” One you accomplish even one of these tasks I promise the momentum will start to roll.

Should you be looking for help tackling a bigger goal {particularly career oriented} head HERE. For general 2015 inspiration that includes fitness tips, fresh recipes and more inspirational quotes head HERE!

What are some of your new year’s solutions to getting 2015 off to a stellar start?? Even if it’s de-junking your junk drawer we want to hear them!

image 1 via // 2 via Clementine Daily // 3 via Stadshem // 4 ikea