Happy New Year! Welcome to 2023. Everyone here at Market Street Talent hopes that your first week back in the new year is off to a good start. When we returned from our holiday break, we had our first meeting of the year and did things a little differently. We shared what our goals or intentions would be for 2023. Here are some of the intentions our team will be focusing on.
Self-Care
This was one that was a common goal and one of mine for the new year. Self-Care is doing things that improve both your physical and mental health and help you live well. It can help you manage stress, lower your risk of illness and increase energy (NIMH.gov).
Some examples of self-care activities include, regular exercise, making sleep a priority, practicing gratitude, and staying connected with friends and family. For more information and ideas on self-care visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.
Knitting and Crocheting
I am always so impressed with those who have the patience to knit and crochet! We have two team members who love these activities and have made goals to either knit more or learn new crocheting patterns. Here is s a photo of Haley’s handy work and a YouTube video on how to crochet a granny hexagon cardigan from Meg.
Meditating
Meditation is another great Self-Care activity. According to Mindful.org when we meditate, we lower our stress levels, get to know our pain, improve focus, reduce brain chatter, and are kinder to ourselves enabling us to find more joy in daily living. When beginning your mediating practice, you only need to set a short time like five or 10 minutes and work up to longer sessions. Our account executive Heidi’s goal is to expand her meditation practice to 45 minutes. Way to go Heidi!
Reading
Reading books helps us become more compassionate and empathetic. It helps to deepen our insights to others thoughts and feelings, gives us a sense of our own thoughts, lessens cognitive decline, reduces stress, and improves critical thinking (Today.com). I have to say I have never met such an avid group of readers as we have here at MST! It is not uncommon to see book swapping happening when we are all in the office together. Many in our group have set a goal to read at least one book a month. Aizlyn has been reading at least 10 books a month! That is amazing Aizlyn! Looking for some inspiration for your next book or a list to read. Check out Goodreads listopia of books that include different genres to look through.
Connecting more with friends and family
Another goal set by Jen Gray is to be more connected to friends and family. Staying connected with others and having meaningful and productive activities with others improves mood, gives a sense of purpose and increases our life span (ndsu.edu). Jen was inspired by this New York Times article “The 7-Day Happiness Challenge” and their suggestion of the 8-Minute Phone Call. Dr Bob Waldinger certainly summed up why I have trouble connecting “most busy people “tend to think that in some unspecified future, we’ll have a ‘time surplus,’ where we’ll be able to connect with old friends.” That may never materialize, he said, so pick up the phone and invest the time right now. Click here to read the whole article.
We want to hear what your resolutions or intentions are for 2023 – leave comments below and perhaps help to inspire someone else to do the same!
Happy New Year from the Team at Market Street Talent!
