Since my wife is Chinese, I consider myself to be half Chinese. And if you’re like me and a lot of other INFPs, you’re already losing the fight on your 2014 New Year’s resolutions. But the good news is that today is the start of Chinese New Year! So why not renew some already weakened resolutions and use this opportunity to come up with some more easily accomplished resolutions.
I’ve compiled some Chinese-inspired resolutions to help you along:
- Drink More Tea – By now we all know the health benefits of tea and particularly, green tea. Take this opportunity to integrate it into your daily routine so that you can cleanse your body.
- Drink Hot Water – It was hard for me to get my head around this, but the Chinese (and many Asian cultures) believe that hot water can melt the junk out of your insides and cleanse you. After a while I was happy to have hot water. It’s calorie free and is nice when I just want a hot drink. Give up cold soft drinks and start drinking hot water instead!
- Eat Fresh Fish – As an American, I feel we eat so little fish. But it’s so vital for heart health and cholesterol. And although I still don’t LOVE it, I am learning to appreciate it. You should too.
- Eat Clean – Authentic Chinese is usually very simple. There are fewer ingredients so you know exactly what you’re eating. And when you eat that way long enough, you just feel better. Although he’s not Chinese, I like Tony Horton’s take on clean eating.
- Be Generous – One of the cornerstones of Chinese culture is generosity. Give to others with no expectations of getting something back. And if you’re in San Francisco, we’ve started a site to help you donate your skills.
- Take Time off of Work – You know what? I’m a workaholic. I barely take time off to recouperate. But as an INFP, I need to understand how essential it is to just stop for a bit. Random days off and vacations throughout the year are a great way to accomplish this. Plan something now!
- Use Feng Shui to Redecorate a Room in Your House – I think that INFPs are a prime group of people to practice Feng Shui. As a sensitive individual, I’m sure you’ve walked into places that just feel nice; that have a good vibe to them. And I’m fairly certain that most of that feeling can be attributed to Feng Shui. The arrangement of the items in the room greatly influences the flow of energy throughout the space. Do some research and do some simple Feng Shui in a room to see how it changes the feel of the room. P.S. Sounds like a great job for INFPs!
- Clean to Get Rid of Last Year’s Bad Luck – A big part of Chinese New Year is cleaning your house. The idea is to sweep away bad luck from the previous year and welcome in good luck this year.
- Learn Tai Chi – Tai Chi is a beatiful form of Chinese Martial Arts that is all about energy flow and allowing your body to align to the energy of the universe. Sounds like another great job for INFPs!
- Get Closer to Nature – I think all INFPs need to be closer to nature. Go walk in a park. Enjoy the beauty of nature around you.
- Waste Less – Another hard concept for me to grasp was eating the ENTIRE animal. I was totally freaked out when my mother-in-law and wife were eating chicken’s feet and congealed pig’s blood. But when you look at it, that act is more “green” than any act of recycling I’ve ever seen in the U.S.
- Get a Haircut – One common act is to get a haircut at the end of the year. Which means it’s too late for this year! Cutting anything during the New Year (which is just over two weeks long) is considered bad luck.
- Spend Time with Family – The best part of Chinese New Year is taking time to relax and spend time with family. We go out and eat together and it’s nice to just take a small break to appreciate what we have.
I hope you can take something away from these ideas and please let me know if you have any others in the comments below!