Ralph On the Shelf
Your favorite holiday spy just got an extended contract. And this time, he's coming for the adults.
Happy Week After Christmas!
I hope you’re taking some time to rest and reflect during this week between Christmas and New Year’s. It’s a strange time of year.
I mean, what exactly are we supposed to do this week?
Nobody actually knows.
But the thing is, even though most of us probably don’t know what day it is, we are aware that reality (2024) is approaching. Bit by bit, we’re starting to see glimpses of the New Year and its call for us to start fresh.
Which means we’ll have to stop eating Christmas cookies for breakfast.
And we’ll most likely make a few New Year’s Resolutions.
Perhaps you’re already thinking of what yours might be - does it match up with what Forbes calls some of the top resolutions?
For 2024, the Forbes Health/OnePoll survey found some resolutions to be more common than others, with the most popular goals including:
Improved fitness (48%)
Improved finances (38%)
Improved mental health (36%)
Lose weight (34%)
Improved diet (32%)
Many of you may remember my (#rant) about resolutions last year. I basically didn’t want to have anything to do with them - mainly because, more often than not, we start with the best of intentions and then ditch our promises within the first few weeks.
I’ve got a theory about why this is, and a potential solution for it, and (wouldn’t you know) it happens to be What I’d Rather Be Talking About this week:
We know (really well) everything we “should” do to be healthier, wealthier, happier, and more fulfilled.
We even have a voice inside our heads that reminds us all the time.
Yet we ignore it. What is up with that?
If you agree it’s time to finally set an intention and follow through with it, I’ve got a solution.
Summon an Elf on a Shelf - you know, Santa’s helper who watches over your kids before the holidays to make sure they do the right thing - to follow you around for 2024.
That way, even when you ignore the inner voice reminding you to…eat better, exercise, get more sleep, spend less, etc., you still might pause because you know your elf is watching.
I’m not kidding.
I’ve got one on contract for the New Year, and his name is Ralph.
I’m thinking that maybe if I turn over the watching part of the resolution to someone else (in this case, Ralph), I’ll be more likely to hold myself accountable.
I invite you to adopt your own elf as well - or whatever imaginary figure works for you. (Like, maybe you’d like a gremlin or an Ewok to be your person, I don’t know… you do you. It’s your make-believe spy and your resolution.)
And then be sure to check out the rest of today’s newsletter - I’ve lined up some podcasts, videos, and more tips that align with a “let’s take care of ourselves” in 2024 theme.
For now, though… feel free to stay on the couch, keep relaxing, and enjoy these carefree days.
Abbey
listen
A bunch of podcasts to encourage any goals you may have -8 Motivational Podcasts to Become Your Best Self This Year.
Change happens when we feel calm - try these meditation and mindfulness podcasts for 2024.
Looking to eat better? Here’s a comprehensive list of nutrition podcasts.
Time to get your bank account in order? See these personal finance podcasts - top picks of 2023.
watch
A new health and wellness channel I’m checking out, plus here are six others that talk about wellness.
Micro Habits that can help with any 2024 resolutions.
eat
Good nutrition starts with reducing inflammation. Here are some great meals for that.
Healthy Mediterranean-style lunches, creamy immune-boosting soup, and an anti-inflammatory grocery haul.
This is interesting! Here are the top food & nutrition trends for 2024.
read
This week’s Letters to Louie is a special New Year’s edition called “Into the New Year.” If you’re new here, Letters to Louie is a writing project my dad started in his 80s when he reconnected with his childhood friend, Louis. The two exchanged emails for years, and the letters are absolutely priceless.
Here are 31 books to choose from if you’re looking for some motivation in 2024.
on a serious note
I got the idea for this newsletter when my husband was preparing to go to the doctor, and I thought to myself, “You know, doctors should really have a form that spouses fill out so they get the real story.”
But then I realized that if this were the case, my husband would also be filling a form out, this time to rat on me.
And it’s not like either one of us is doing seriously unhealthy things. And we don’t have deep, dark secrets. I think it’s just the reality that sometimes, we ignore some of the important things we should be doing - for a variety of reasons. And we’re not always exactly eager to call ourselves out on the things we’re missing in our diets or the things we’re doing wrong. (Because really, what fun is that?)
Plus, we might be subconsciously or consciously ignoring red flags in our lives. Hence, this is where a nice little Elf overlord would be helpful… to make us accountable to some force other than ourselves, which we’ve all proven isn’t always that effective.
But, since Ralph on the Shelf isn’t real (sorry to break it to you), maybe we can go ahead and just try to be our own elves and try to make 2024 the year we really look after our own well-being.
Even when no one is watching.
How’s that for a non-resolution resolution?
We’ll revisit this next Thursday.
Abbey
