Shocking as it might be, I was originally going to write a New Year’s resolution post on New Year’s Day. However, it seems appropriate that I am writing it instead at the end of a residency rotation that has always been, well, not my favorite. Perhaps this week, this day even, can be the new beginning I have been seeking.

Like many people, I had high hopes for 2020. I planned to rock my second year of family medicine residency. I was going to get ahead on my senior project, take charge of my career, and finally master the art of finishing my charting by the end of the shift.

I was going to start working out every day and lose that last 15 pounds that stands between me and my favorite clothes. I was going to start running again and get my stamina and energy back.

I was going to make a lot of changes to become greener and lower waste so I could feel like a better citizen of this planet.

Some of that happened, but a whole lot of it was sidelined as the year went on. I’m sure I don’t need to tell you why.

Like many people out there, 2020 was not my best year. I struggled to hold together the tangled yet unraveling ball of yarn that is my sanity while dealing with the existential fear and rapid change that defined the year. I wish I could say that I remained focused and achieved my goals in the midst of the chaos, but I didn’t. However, I can honestly say that I made progress and am starting 2021 in a much better place despite the challenges of this last trip around the sun.

My story is not over yet. This year, I intend to continue working on my goal of becoming more sustainable and reducing my impact on the planet. I also want to drastically improve my finances, level up my health, and become more well-rounded – in other words, to do all of the things I meant to do last year, and the year before, and the year before…

What will make this year different? Well, first, I am finishing residency, which will hopefully mean more time and more income. This will be an immeasurable advantage in accomplishing goals. In addition, the pandemic has made me, and probably a lot of readers out there, take stock of our lives. Last, the last year may not have left us with much but I did walk away with some shiny new coping mechanisms. If I can survive the first wave of Covid-19 as a resident at the center of the pandemic without losing my grip, I can handle a few simple lifestyle changes.

Although I have not had the same experiences as the millions staying at home through the pandemic, I have seen enough major life changes to have a healthy perspective about what I want as we move forward from this disaster of a year. Like our new president, I am looking closely at what I should keep and what needs to change.

My goals for the year can be broken up into four main categories:

• Financial: I am graduating from residency and working on getting my first doctor job. This means a great deal of upfront expense (a move, applying for various licenses) that will be partially – but not completely – covered by my new employer. In addition, I am rapidly reaching a point when I need to shift from survival to improving my net worth by paying off student loan debt and saving for various endeavors – retirement, a home, college for my children. “No buy 2021” will likely become “little to no buy for the rest of my life” and I need to get comfortable with that reality.
• Health: I am at an age where I need to use it or accept that I’m going to lose it. I choose the former. This means building muscle, improving balance and flexibility, and cutting back on vices.
• Sustainability: Last year I made 52 changes, one per week, to become more sustainable. Unfortunately I only had a chance to write about a handful of them. I plan to engage even more with urban homesteading and zero waste movements in an effort to be a better citizen of our ailing planet.
• Organization: All of the above goals are challenging. After all, I am working 50-80 hour weeks at an exhausting job. Being organized will be key to achieving my goals and hopefully leave me with more free time for these pursuits,

I plan to blog about these changes as I undertake them. One way I’ve decided to be accountable is to make very specific and measurable goals. Thus, I decided to make two concrete goals for each category. I have settled on the following for the next few months:

• No buy (modified)- outside of consumable items such as food, I am not buying anything outside of modest gifts. If I need clothing or household items, I will get them at a thrift store. I am not counting Goodwill Outlet purposes because they are items about to be thrown in a dumpster if not sold and because the $1 or so a pound does not make a meaningful difference in my budget.
• Work on side hustles – I am the queen of side hustles and supported my family through medical school with them. Residency has been a busy time but I will need to explore side gigs to get my financial ball rolling.
• Yoga every day
• Intermittent fasting – I am a big believer in intermittent fasting because it is the most evidence based way to change body chemistry and achieve a healthy body fat distribution. I plan to eat from noon to 8 PM. I am a crazy snacker and will happily stuff my face from waking to midnight so I am already struggling!
• Continue last year’s ecofriendly changes and continue to seek out new ways to reduce my footprint
• Produce more of my own food – a challenge in a small urban space but one that I am improving every day
• Keep my planner up to date and carry it with me everywhere so I can update real time
• Do a small residency and moving related task every day so the various trials of graduating, moving, and establishing a medical practice doesn’t build up to be an ordeal

A lot of positive changes are coming in my life but change has always been an emotional process for me. I am working on the gentle art of embracing the new flow even as the currents change around me.