Photography by Dom Aguiar (@dom_aguiar) from Unsplash
We may not be alone when we say that this year has been rough despite new developments with what's been plaguing the past two years with languishing. We hoped that things would start feeling a little more 'normal,' but with every moment we could feel it near us, it's halted with detours. It's been a year of ups and downs, plans made and canceled.
Though this may have dampened our general outlook and mood for the past year, we can't help but recount how we were still able to push through and create the littlest joys, small moves towards progress, and personal triumphs (whatever they may look like!) Without us fully recognizing it, we've made tiny changes and habits that, looking back, gave us the most impact today as a reaction to the difficulty of getting through the year.
These changing-making habits look different for everyone, but for us, they can all be summed up into three words: easy, better, and very much us. It's in these three words that helped make keeping these habits something we would enjoy doing. We follow through with our goals since we targeted these habits into bite-sized actions that build towards them— making them sustainable and easy to follow. Through having our best selves as a motivation behind each habit, we were able to feel how it added to our lifestyles. And of course, while our attempts may not always have yielded the best results (this is when it feels more like a chore or when guilt's the dominant feeling), we did our best to find ones that suit us instead.
From finding which habits are easy, better, us, we came up with the top three habits we're taking for next year, just in case you feel like taking them with you, too:
Cleansing in and out.
Photography by Elena Joland (@labf) from Unsplash
This was the year of confrontation for us as we sat down and constantly assessed ourselves to see which aspects in life we need to work on the most. From there, we checked to see if certain parts of it were good for a time in our life, but not anymore right now. Or if there were parts that feel redundant or excessive to the kind of lifestyle we live. Although they were tough to get rid of, it took gradual yet effective little cleanses that continue to help us. It's a continuous process, but the lighter load makes it feel worth it!
The act that started it all: A daily cleanse of our email! Take time in the day dedicated to reading, categorizing, or deleting emails to avoid that overwhelming notification count.
Take it to skin: Our skin can naturally over-produce sebum, oil, and dead skin cells— make room for cleaner, healthier, and decongested skin with The Essential Facial.
Getting specific about our actions.
Image from Simply Skin
Although we love going with the flow once in a while and dabbling into the unknown, for goals that require our high focus, we made sure to get specific. Our lists became SMARTer— detailed about how we'll be able to achieve them, when we could do them, and what we get from proudly ticking that little checkbox all for the aim of attaining our goals.
The act that started it all: Getting specific about skincare and seeing and feeling progress became a gateway to the magic of being particular.
Take it to skin: Say goodbye to umbrella treatments that just confuse and go laser focus with treatments that get down to the specifics. Say hello to brighter skin with Clearlift— a laser treatment that targets pigmentation and pores. For smoother skin texture, the Pixel targets deep acne marks and scars, large pores, and uneven skin texture.
Embracing convenience.
Photography by Alena Shekhovtcova (@alenashekhovtcova) from Pexels
This year, we embraced letting wellness and going digital go hand-in-hand in the spirit of convenience and keeping everything handy. Having care items or things that bring us joy everywhere helped us carry through our daily life and if we needed more proof to attest to this, we don't need to look too far or hard. Our growing preference to have our essentials (and wants!) delivered to us, going for digital transactions, or having a yearning for a more seamless experience when we do decide to go out for our must-haves say it all!
The act that started it all: Discovering apps that serve as a source for movement and stillness in one made us think of what other aspects bring us more ease and convenience so we could make time for more.
Take it to skin: Convenience doesn't always mean less effective. Take it from the duo you'd want to keep in your skin care group— the Ultimate Clear Power Duo combines two of our best treatments, Pixel and Clearlift, to work on deeper scars and marks, rougher skin texture, and larger pores.
Our past selves might look at the version of ourselves today with wonder. Perhaps we weren't big fans of detoxing or were cynical about going digital in the spirit of ease and convenience, but the changes brought us to this point in our journey so far. Here's to where they'll take us next and what other habits we'll discover in the future!
Thumbnail from Eniola Bakare (@eniola) and Santosh Verma (@photogangsta1) Unsplash