| | | | | |  Allie Sullberg | | IN THIS ISSUE | Revisiting last year's goals | The major events of 2022 | Cliffside living in Utah | | | | Good morning and Happy New Year. With personal development on everyone's minds this weekend, we're spending a good chunk of today's newsletter offering ideas, tips, and other suggestions for New Year's resolutions. To kick things off, here are two concepts that have influenced my approach to setting goals this year: 1. When we interviewed Atomic Habits author James Clear in September, he said that one of his ideas that most resonated with readers is "identity-based habits." As Clear explained, "Rather than worrying about the results you want, focus on becoming the type of person who could achieve those results. So instead of worrying about losing 40 pounds, focus on being the kind of person who doesn't miss workouts. Or rather than worrying about finishing the novel, focus on being the kind of person who writes every day." 2. This article in the Guardian argues that the key to self-improvement is to ditch the concept of "reinvention" and accept yourself as imperfect—only once you no longer believe that you must transform into a "New You" are you able to make meaningful changes. The money quote comes from Zen teacher Shunryu Suzuki, who told his students, "Each of you is perfect just as you are—and you could all use improvement." —Neal Freyman | | | | | | | | | For last year's New Year's Day issue, we asked Morning Brew product manager and goal-setting expert Ashna Mankotia for some tips on how to achieve personal growth in 2021. A lot has changed since then (Applebee's is in the metaverse now!), so we decided to follow up with Ashna. Looking back on your 2021 goals, how did you do? As a reminder, those goals included being able to do 75 pushups at once, reach 10k followers on TikTok, and reach 5k followers on Twitter. The way I set goals up, I can't fail at them completely. I make purposely ambiguous, high-level goals and then I develop metrics to measure them by. So did I check every single box? Honestly, no. But I did work toward everything, including my content creation. I didn't hit 75 pushups, but I just pulled that number out of thin air. I can do way more than I could at the beginning of the year. I never beat myself up for not hitting a certain goal or hitting a certain number. How did your goals change throughout the year? I tried to be more conscious of the fact that it was a difficult year. At least where I am, in the Toronto area, the first half of this year was very locked down. So it was very easy to just focus on my fitness goals. And then in the second half of this year, Covid cases were going down, and there was more flexibility to travel and to do things. My fitness goals were no longer the main priority—my biggest priority was living my life. But I think goals exist to make our lives better, so I don't think there's anything wrong with changing a goal halfway through the year or just crossing it out completely. These are things you've created for yourself. What types of goals do you think people should set? I think everyone should set financial goals—they just matter so much. It's important to think about your future and the lifestyle you want to live. When I was younger, like 18 or 20, I would just avoid looking at my credit card. I didn't get into investing until 2020. So if I could make a goal for everyone, I would want people to feel like they can say, at the end of 2022, "I feel really financially literate." What are some of your 2022 goals? - Improve strength: I definitely want to get to those 75 pushups.
- Increase content creation: I want to hit 100k on TikTok and monetize my TikTok.
- Save to spend: I have a lot of weddings next year. I want to make sure I'm allocating my money and savings early on in the year, so in the summertime I'm not strained.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity. | | | | | | What magical tool positively benefits both your body and mind? Only the nifty Peloton App, of course. Feel physical and mental gains when you lift, run, meditate, and more with Peloton's inspiring Instructors. And if your New Year's resolution was to make time for fitness, boy do we have good news for you: Peloton is offering 2-months free on their app*, redeemable from 12/26/21 to 1/31/22. With the Peloton App, you can try a variety of workouts beyond cycling, including Strength, Yoga, Meditation, and more—no equipment or bike required. Enjoy classes from world-class Instructors, earn milestones, and maximize your workouts with the app's metrics and tracking features. Where will you be after 2-months free on the Peloton App? Find out here. | | | | Each week, our workplace whisperer Shane Loughnane answers a reader-submitted question about work in 2021. Anything bothering you at work? Ask Shane here. At the risk of reducing your workplace woes in 2022 (and thus jeopardizing my usefulness around here), we invited you last week to share your professional resolutions that you're committed to accomplishing in the new year. Here are some reader responses that may spark ideas for your personal 2022 playbook: "Stop feeling guilty for taking time off."—Kelly, CA "Focus on one professional development area each month. Read a biz book, keep up with national news, improve soft and hard skill sets, ask more 'why' questions of my team."— Alicia, Houston "Own the problem and pick up the phone."—Mike, Dallas "Stop being available all hours of the day. Work and personal life has completely blurred since being 100% remote."—Marie, Chicago "Don't continuously scan for emails all day. Dedicate time to read/respond so I can fully focus on other work."—Jen, Brooklyn "Review how the workweek went and plan the following week with small changes that can improve it."—Diana, Portugal "Take 2–3 hours every Wednesday for a creative or restorative activity."—Caitlin, Seattle "I'm making a New Year's resolution to stop procrastinating, but I think I'll make it for next New Year's."—Jim, Maui And a special thanks to those of you who shared your commitment to utilizing your standing desk more consistently this year; your resolutions (literally) brought me to my feet. And good luck to everyone who is resolving to bring self-improvement to the workplace. 2022 is going to be a good one. | | | ED JONES/AFP via Getty Images Here is a (very) incomplete list of major events you should look out for in 2022. Space: 2021 was monumental for the space industry, from the James Webb telescope launch to Jeff Bezos spraying an emotional William Shatner with champagne. But 2022 could top it. - NASA is launching two extremely powerful rockets as part of its goal to send astronauts back to the moon in 2025.
- SpaceX could launch its Starship rocket into orbit. It's the reusable spacecraft that will ferry NASA astronauts from their capsule to the lunar surface and enable SpaceX's Mars ambitions.
- Blue Origin, SpaceX, and Virgin Galactic will ramp up their space tourism efforts by selling more joyrides to wealthy people. Virgin is hoping to begin commercial service this year.
- This cool-looking space plane, Sierra Space's Dream Chaser, could send cargo to the International Space Station.
Sports: 2022 will give us two big international sporting events, each with plenty of geopolitical overtones. - Beijing will become the first city to host both a Winter and Summer Olympics when the Winter games kick off there in February. The US and some of its allies aren't sending diplomats to the competition to protest the Chinese government's human rights abuses.
- The World Cup will oddly take place in November—because it'd be way too hot to play soccer in host country Qatar during the summer. Many critics have taken exception to Qatar hosting; the Gulf state has been accused of mistreating migrant workers who built the soccer stadiums and of bribing FIFA officials to secure the hosting rights in the first place.
New regulations: A slew of new state laws are going into effect this year. The most notable? 26 states and Washington, DC, will raise their minimum wages (CA and parts of NY will bump it up to at least $15/hour). - Plus, a controversial new California law that requires more living space for breeding pigs and other livestock took effect yesterday. Critics argue the law will cause bacon prices to spike in CA—other researchers, however, have said price increases would be modest.
Streaming: Netflix will look to rev up last year's sluggish growth with new seasons of its biggest hits, including Stranger Things, Bridgerton, and The Crown. HBO will try to redeem the unredeemable—Season 8 of Game of Thrones—with a prequel, House of the Dragon. Amazon Prime Video will release its highly anticipated and uber-expensive Lord of the Rings series, while Disney+ will supply us with more Marvel and Star Wars content we've been so starved of. Music: One of the highlights of the year in music will definitely be ABBA's Voyage concert in May, where the Swedish pop legends will perform in a purpose-built London arena using digital avatars. Good luck finding tickets. - We will also hopefully see the return of festivals like Burning Man and Coachella, which have been canceled for the previous two years.
- Some notable album releases: Lizzo, Mitksi, The Weeknd, Avril Lavigne (!), and possibly Kendrick Lamar. And possibly Rihanna.
Global politics: South Korea, France, Hungary, the Philippines, and Brazil are among the countries holding pivotal elections this year. The US midterms will take place in November. | | | | | | The ultimate resolution. It's got nothing to do with eating 50 pounds of kale or, ugh, making new friends (who's got the energy?). Instead, it's all about getting your financial and investing house in order. And with The Motley Fool offering 60% off their premier stock picking service for new members for their first year, you can start your year off with the potential for big returns. How big? Since the service began, the picks have returned an average of 656% [as of 12/14/2021]. Get 60% off here. | | | | Welcome to Open House, the only newsletter section that didn't set any resolutions and is just hoping to coast this year. We'll give you a few facts about a listing and you try to guess the price.  ZillowToday's home sits right up against Red Cliffs National Conservation area in the booming city of St. George, Utah, about an hour west of Zion National Park. This 3,447 square-foot new build sits on a cul de sac so you never have to worry about your neighbors putting up a bouncy castle and obstructing your beautiful view. Amenities include: - 3 beds, 4 baths
- Whole lotta rocks
- 4-car attached garage
- Tetris-like floor plan
How much for cliffside living? | | | 1. Rescuing a Jeep from a pretty dire situation. (Matt's Off Road Recovery)
2. It's hard to live with some objects, and even harder to get rid of them. (Real Life)
3. Betty White improvising. (Joe on Twitter)
4. The merits of negative thinking. (Przekrój)
5. The most scathing book reviews of 2021. (Literary Hub)
6. On renovating a golf course. (Lying Four)
7. The benefits of taking your next Zoom meeting on the go. (HR Brew)
8. Self-medicating chimps, pugilistic shrimp, and other remarkable animals: an illustrated guide. (The MIT Press Reader)
9. Ketamine therapy is going mainstream. Are we ready? (The New Yorker)
10. The death of green screen. (Mr Sunday Movies) Resolve to make your home a fortress. SimpliSafe is advanced home security without the hassle. In just 30 minutes you can cover every window, door, and room with sensors and cameras to detect break-ins, fires, floods, and more. Try it risk-free for 60 days here.* *This is sponsored advertising content | | | Welcome back to Morning Brew's Meme Battle, where we crown a single memelord every Sunday. Today's winner: Raul in Santo Domingo, DR  This week's challenge: You can find the new meme template here for next Sunday. Once you're done making your meme, submit it at this link for consideration. | | | | | | | ✢ A Note From Peloton New App Members Only. Terms apply. Credit card required. After your 2 month free trial, App Membership is $12.99/mo. Cancel anytime before free trial ends. |  | Written by Neal Freyman, Shane Loughnane, and Matty Merritt Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up here | ADVERTISE // CAREERS // SHOP // FAQ
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