12 Days…12 Grapes…12 Ways to Rock the Rest of the Year

As of tomorrow (12/20), only 12 days remain in 2015

Make each one count! You’ve probably heard of the 12 Days of Christmas. But apparently the number 12 has lots of other significance too. For more about the grape thing and other meanings of 12, click here.

But back to these final 12 days.

You don’t have to wait until midnight on December 31st to start making positive changes in your life. I put together this little list of 12 things that are pretty simple to do between now and the end of the year.

They fall into three major categories…brain, body, soul, and technology. I only throw in technology because using the right kinds of tech — in the right ways — can free up time and space, enabling you to feed your brain, body, and soul (and tend to your business, if that’s your thing). I’ve color-coded them, although many of them will do lots of good for the other categories too. I added some links to give you some ways to get started and help explain why I picked the things on the list. Even if you don’t do 12 things in the next 12 days, you’ll still end the year better than you started it!

1. Make a mind map or vision board or organize your files or your desk. De-cluttering and goal-setting are liberating.
2. Do a puzzle. Use a new part of your head.
3. Read a magazine article or subscribe to a new e-zine or blog. (Here’s why leaders should be readers, according to Forbes.)
4. Eliminate sugar from your diet — even just for a day — and get more sleep.
5. Walk somewhere cool and interesting (and track those steps — see #12).
6. Do something to pamper yourself — manicure, massage, haircut, or just an extra hour of sleep.
7. Try one thing that’s totally new. Or one thing that scares the hell out of you. Disrupt your system.
8. Say something kind to a stranger or loved one.
9. Do something for a non-profit. Anything. Doesn’t have to be a cash contribution.
10. Download one new app (and learn how to use it).
11. Get a secure cloud-based password keeper.
12. Treat yourself to a fitness gadget and start that “get fit” resolution early.

BONUS #13: You may have other little things that you want to do to make the next 12 days count. How about you make  your own list of things you’ll do over the next 12 days (or however many are remaining) and share some of them in the “comments” section? My January blogs/posts/tweets/e-newsletter will all deal with ways to get “fitter” (in business and in life) and I will happily share your best suggestions with my readers.