11 Magical and Transformative New Year's Resolutions to Cultivate Peace in 2022

After the unprecedented years of 2020 and 2021, we’re all searching for peace and calm. Luckily, there exist magical resolutions that will teach you how to cultivate peace in your life. There is never a bad time to make a resolution that will lead to growth. Whether you’re searching for New Year’s resolutions or a whole new mindset, I’m here with peaceful suggestions for you.

2020 and 2021

The last two years have been out of the ordinary and challenging to navigate. 2020 and 2021 were two of the hardest years for many, many people. The pandemic caused death, heartache, business hardships, school challenges, stir-craziness, and so much more. Many of us woke up out of sleepy states to learn new perspectives. Many of us remain fast asleep. 

It’s been a wild ride, but I truly believe that much of the pain we’ve all witnessed and experienced these past two years is leading us to something even more beautiful than what was before. We’re all learning, growing, and healing. 2020 and 2021 provided us all with a fresh perspective on how short life can be and how important happiness is. 

2022 is a year for peace.

Like every new year, 2022 is a fresh start. 2022 is a year for peace, acceptance, contentment, balance, and calm. We all deserve 2022 so much.

On a personal note, I want to cultivate peace in 2022 so I can feel more acceptance and love for this beautiful journey of life. Amidst the pain and suffering of the past two years, I’ve taken big leaps to follow my dreams! Now, I’m ready to soak in every moment. I will live mindfully and slowly this year.

This list of 12 magical and transformative New Year’s resolutions is built around the journey, not the destination. Therefore, these resolutions aren’t measurable goals, but rather big picture mindsets with the person you want to become in mind. Let this list guide you to cultivate peace and calm this year. 

Magical and Transformative New Year’s Resolutions to Cultivate Peace in 2022

Less screen, more green.

Less screen. I don’t know about you, but I spend a lot of time with my eyes glued to the screen. It’s a necessary evil of many of our careers and it’s how we stay connected with our loved ones. Unfortunately, screens cause eye strain, fatigue, dizziness, and anxiety. And I’d really rather spend more time in nature instead of the virtual world.

When I think of the person I want to be this year, I picture my hiking boots on a dirt trail, my hair blowing in the wind, and my road bike climbing mountains. I just want to be outside, adventuring! 

More green. Green means a lot of things to me. I wrote a poem about the color green in my 2021 poetry collection. The color green is the color of the trees, of course. But it’s also soft, calm, peaceful, refreshing, quiet, energizing, and sustainable. I hope 2022 is the color green.

This year, set down the screen and immerse yourself in nature instead. 

Bring back the childhood magic.

Your inner child has a lot to teach you. In my experience, my inner child actually has all of the answers. Children are full of magic because they haven’t been changed by the world yet. They’re too naive to understand the hardships of life, and that is a gift. Children are fun and creative because they don’t care what other people think. They just let their imagination run wild with no limitations.

Adults have caged their imagination to fit into this prison cell called “society’s expectations.” But you can break your imagination out of the cage by trusting your inner child. 

If you look inward and let your inner child come back out, you can bring the magic back into your life. The magic of building forts, hanging sparkly lights, reading stories out loud, and playing pretend in the woods. Kids can take every situation and turn it into a beautiful story, like a fairytale. Let your inner child guide you to create with your bare hands. Let your imagination be wild and beautiful and free. 

Mental Health Blog Disclaimer

I am not a medical professional, therapist, or mental healthcare professional. The information provided on this website is for informational purposes only, comes from my own personal experiences, and may be read, interpreted, and practiced at your own risk. Do not rely on this information as a substitute to medical advice or treatment from a healthcare professional.

Accept what you cannot change and change what you cannot accept.

Acceptance

Acceptance is a helpful first step to overcoming negative emotions and difficult situations. Acceptance is powerful because when you accept this beautiful, imperfect life as it is, you gain control to take a step forward. 

There are always going to be external circumstances that are out of your control. When you begin to accept imperfections and expect hardships, you will find peace. It is peaceful when you stop resisting. When you stop resisting, you’re able to find calm, balance, and goodness within a difficult situation. Once you find acceptance, you will find the positives in your situation. And there is always something to celebrate.

Change 

You’d be surprised by how much power you have. You’d be so shocked to discover how capable you are of changing your situation. Change is necessary when you cannot find acceptance. Trust the voice in your head that keeps nagging at you about something that doesn’t feel right. Trust your gut and find the courage to take one baby step towards change. The more steps you take, the more it becomes a habit to change situations that are not working for you.

Forgive yourself and forgive others. Let go.

Forgive yourself.

Humans are perfectly imperfect. But it’s easy to fall into a perfectionist’s way of thinking. It’s so easy to become obsessed with our image and with doing the right thing. You might not even realize you’re doing it, but you likely create extra stress in your life by setting high standards for yourself. Forgive yourself for being human and making mistakes. Forgiveness translates into accepting yourself for who you are and embracing your flaws. Forgive yourself and you will notice a decrease in resistance and an increase in peace.

Forgive others. 

If you can forgive yourself, you can forgive others, too. Let the compassion you feel for yourself extend to other people. Grudges, judgment, and jealousy lead to resentment, which feels awful. Explore the bitter tastes in your mouth when you think of certain people. Learn to forgive your friends and enemies alike by unclenching your fist and letting go. You release yourself when you forgive another.

Practice caring less and not taking things personally.

It’s important to care about yourself, others, and life. But it’s harmful when you care too much. For the anxious person who cares way too much about everything, this is the year to learn how to let go and cultivate peace with your anxiety. 

Perhaps you care too much because you take everything personally. I do it, too. But the truth is, no one else cares as much as you do. No one cares about that small mistake you made that you continue to dwell over. No one cares about the perfection of your life as much as you do.

The people who care too much are the people who blow up scenarios in their heads. We take things personally because we’re sensitive and we hold the misbelief that people care about us as much as we care about ourselves. But when someone says something that hurts your feelings, they probably aren’t doing it to be mean. It is NOT personal. Everyone is the main character in their own lives and everyone speaks from a place that revolves around THEM. What I’m saying is that people speak in direct reflection of their own trauma, their own life. They aren’t out to get you; they’re just speaking from a place inside their mind that has nothing to do with you.

The next time you catch yourself caring way too much, try to remember that it’s not about you and that everything is going to be okay. Inhale peace, exhale tension, and let go.

Inhale the present because it’s a gift.

Instead of dwelling on the past or worrying about the future, form habits that land you right in the present moment. The present is truly a gift, so engage your five senses to see, feel, hear, taste, and smell the world around you. Practice mindfulness to ground yourself. Caress the leaves on the trees during your next hike. Inhale the smell of your grandmother’s freshly baked pie like it’s the last scent you’ll sniff. Find inner peace with mindfulness in 2022. 

Embrace the slow moments.

Life seems to fly by faster and faster as we age and as we keep ourselves busy. Let’s make a point to   s l o w   d o w n   this year. 

There is a famous saying that encourages people to stop and smell the roses. It’s aimed at people who are rushing too fast and working too hard. Take that saying literally and actually stop. Actually smell the roses.

If you practice what I’ve preached in the resolution above and you inhale the present mindfully, you’ll have a heck of an easier time slowing down. Sometimes it’s more productive to walk instead of run because your mind and body need to slow down. 

Slow moments are the ones you experience fully. They are the moments you will actually remember in the future because you gave yourself permission to be aware. We’re so often not aware! We’re just rushing and moving as quickly as we can. This is why your days all blend together and you won’t even remember what you ate for dinner each night this week. When you embrace the slow moments, you cultivate peace and awareness.

Focus on the journey, not the destination.

The only certain destination in life is death. It could be other things - like a position in your career, your dream house, or your kid’s college acceptance letter. It could be those things if humans were more content. But humans are not inherently content, and so you will never reach your destination until you die. Most people will always want more as long as they live!

And there is nothing wrong with that! It’s a beautiful thing to find the balance between appreciating what you have and still wanting more for yourself and your family. But I think the destination mindset might make life more miserable for some people. For the people whose mindset doesn’t allow them to enjoy the journey to that destination, maybe you should shift your perspective.

If you’re always chasing after the destination, you’ll never be satisfied and you’ll forget to celebrate. I’m serious. Once you reach your destination, you’ll brush right over it and move on to the next thing because you will have forgotten how to celebrate! Form habits that will allow you to celebrate the little things along your journey. Reward yourself for small accomplishments and look forward to the moments along your journey. Then, when you reach the destination, you will feel true gratitude for it.

Appreciating the journey cultivates peace because you’ll find ways to slow down and enjoy the present for what it is. The future will come, I promise. Just enjoy what you have right now first.

Conquer hard things (almost) every day.

Doing hard things sounds counterintuitive to cultivating peace, but hear me out. Conquering hard things every day will transform your life into a more peaceful one. 

What counts as hard things? Anything that makes you hesitate. From getting out of bed on your first alarm to climbing a frozen mountain with an ice pick, there’s a pretty broad spectrum of “hard things.” Start small. Doing small, but slightly challenging things every day teaches you discipline, increases your focus, leads you to growth, and proves that you are capable.

Your comfort zone feels nice and cushiony. On the other side of that zone is where you’re going to find growth. Push yourself outside of your comfort zone most days, and before long it will become a habit. You’ll prove to yourself over and over again that you can conquer hard things, and that mindset will decrease stress and anxiety and increase confidence and peace. 

Lower inflammation like it’s your occupation.

I daresay that anyone could benefit from decreasing the inflammation in their body. Especially for people who suffer from chronic pain and chronic illnesses, lowering inflammation will lead to a happier, healthier life.

Inflammation is a process by which your body’s white blood cells protect you from infection and it occurs when something triggers an immune reaction. Inflammation can take the form of pain, heat, tenderness, allergies, stiffness, fatigue, and more. It can look red and swollen on your skin or it can be hidden deep inside your body.

Although some inflammation can be caused by external factors outside of our control, there is a lot you can do to lower inflammation. It can start with the food and drinks you put in your body every day. For example, alcohol, caffeine, refined carbs, red meat, gluten, and dairy products are common inflammatory foods you could try experimenting with by removing them from your diet one at a time. 

Researching how to lower inflammation can be overwhelming because there are a lot of different ideas and contradicting opinions out there. Take it one baby step at a time and eliminate first before you add something new. 

Spread love and positivity everywhere you go.

I want to end this list by encouraging others to spread love. Sprinkle love everywhere you go like it's tangible. Like rose petals, sprinkle love on the wonderful people in your life. Put them before you sometimes. Like seasoning, sprinkle it on strangers you pass by in the street. Extend kindness and empathy to all because you never know what another is going through and it’s always nice to make someone’s day better. Like a bucket of water, dump love on your head. Always stay true to yourself and extend yourself the same love and compassion you would to your partner or family member.

Positivity is like sunshine and fire because it catches and spreads. It brightens people’s worlds and warms others up. Along with your bucket of love, spread positivity around like wildfire. When you share your optimistic view, you remind others that there is always a light side to every situation. There is always something to celebrate and feel grateful for.

May your 2022 be a year of peace!