52 Things to Help Me Be a Better Person

I've been really busy lately.  The older I get, the more there seems to be that I need to do.  It is so easy to become overwhelmed, bored/busy, and have no idea how or where to start.  At work, it is easy for me to sit at the computer and make a list of all the things I need to do, and slowly work on them.  When it comes to the rest of my life, I can't seem to get either side to function well; I don't remember to make lists, and if I do  make a list, I never get things done.

While I was sitting at work, I was struck with the thought that I could make weekly task lists for life, just like I do for my job.  I found this article and this article that talk about the power of weekly goals.  My brain barreled on further, and I decided that I could use this concept to better myself, not just get things done.  By adding one small self-improvement task to a weekly list, I could work on changing myself into an overall better person.  There are so many things that you can see you want to do:  spend more time with your family, be more spiritual, eat healthier, do service.  Finding time and space to fit all of these things in can be stressful.

Instead, I have made a list of 52 Things to Help Me Be a Better Person, one for each week.  It is divided up into five sections:  personal goals, spiritual goals, service goals, intellectual goals, and health goals.

Personal

• Send 5 "thank you" cards
• Send 5 "thinking of you" cards
• Pick something off of your bucket list and plan it
• Repeat a list of daily affirmations every morning
• Make a list of all your positive attributes and things you like about yourself
• Plan and go on a date
• Get rid of one item of clothing
• Get rid of one pair of shoes
• Write 3 things daily in a gratitude journal
• Write in your journal every day
• Catalog the week with pictures
• Write and send 3 letters
• Learn a new piano song
• Learn a new guitar song
• Deep clean and organize bedroom
• Make a list of bad habits and pick one to work on stopping

Spiritual

• Go to the Temple every day
• Read the entire BoM
• Give away a BoM
• Memorize 5 Scripture Mastery
• Double your next fast offering
• Write a letter to a missionary

Service

• Volunteer at a service organization
• Take the little cousins out for an activity
• Give 10 compliments to complete strangers
• Leave someone hidden notes in their room
• Buy someone else's meal
• Take flowers to the cemetery
• Take a friend out to lunch
• Buy a homeless person food
• Offer a free night of babysitting
• Give away a free tutoring session

Health

• Incorporate a new exercise routine into your schedule
• Try 3 new recipes
• Go sugar-free
• Go gluten-free
• Go vegetarian
• Complete all daily P90X workouts
• Do yoga everyday 
• Count calories honestly on MyFitnessPal every day
• Sign up for a 5k
• Get to bed before 10:30 PM every night
• Limit TV to 1 hour per day
• No social media (FB/twitter/pinterest)

Intellectual

• Learn 3 new vocabulary words every day
• Write at least one new page of a story
• Watch 1 TED talk every day
• Read the entire NYT every day
• Read the entire works of Alfred Tennyson
• Read the entire works of Emily Dickinson
• Read one of Shakespeare's works
• Write a poem

I wrote each of these goals on a cute piece of paper (1/16 of an 8x11) and put it in a mason jar.  Now, every Sunday night, I can pick a new weekly goal to work on!  Wish me luck!