You've Got to Give (Up) a Little to Get a Little

I'm really trying to embrace this whole "new year, new me" concept as I do every January, and this year I'm helped along by the examples and resources provided for me by my coworkers and the great magazine that I work for. But even after just 20 days of the new year, I'm fascinated by how much I've already given up in search of a better me.

As a rule, I am not somebody who makes sacrifices -- for anything or anybody. That's probably at least part of the reason why I am unmarried and childless (but that's another conversation altogether). So, even in pursuit of a "higher self," giving up one thing is almost unthinkable, and yet I've given up several in the last few weeks.

But then I realized that for everything that I've given up, I have gained at least one -- better -- thing in return, if not more. And I think I'm starting to understand more clearly how you really do need to give up (or just give) something to get something in return. Even relationship experts talk about how, if you're preparing to find a relationship partner, you should make room in closets and dresser drawers to be physically as well as emotionally ready for that person to come along (again, a conversation for a later day).

So I started thinking about what I've given up so far versus what I've gotten back already. This is what I came up with:

• Television service - money and time. Even though this wasn't about money, I figure by the end of the year I'll be over $1100 richer from canceling my service. And I've probably gained a good 30 hours a week of tv-free time at home.
• Sugar and high-fructose corn syrup - breathing through my nose. They say that sugar causes inflammation and I believe it. After the first several days of my detox, I noticed that my sinuses, that are almost always congested, were clearer. I haven't used my nasal spray (usually taken twice a day) in over a week now.
• Caffeine - deeper sleep and a little self-respect. I feel that I've been getting to sleep quicker than I used to and, once asleep, I'm not waking up in the middle of the night as I sometimes did. Also, as somebody who was caffeine-free for over 10 years, I was a little embarrassed at my Day 1 reaction to going caffeine-free again. I'm glad that it was a short-lived and that I'm back on track.
  

I expect that this is a very small list of all the things I will have given up and gained in the next month, six months, year. But it gives me hope and inspiration to create even more positive change. And it makes me fully realize that if I want to create and gain wonderful things in my life, I have to embrace a little more sacrifice of the things that are easy and fun but unproductive.