If you Hope smiles 4 PAGES, A SUPPLEMENT OF

SUNDAY TIMES OF INDIA

JANUARY 1, 2017
dont like from the AHM
something, threshold
change it. If of the year
you cant to come,
change it, whispering,

what
change your It will be
attitude happier

they said

17 IDEAS FOR 2017

Maya Alfred Lord
Angelou Tennyson
ADVERTORIAL, LIFESTYLE PROMOTIONAL FEATURE

A New Year is for new things.

Take a survival course. Plan
a travel project. Or start
handwriting. Keep it
interesting in the new year

9 11 15
Nupur.Amarnath@timesgroup.com
GIVE UP CERTAIN WORDS WRITE OFFLINE, CHALLENGE YOUR

1 7
WRITE A LETTER TO
YOUR FUTURE SELF
In Journalism school, our
professor gave us an unusual
assignment write your own
obituary. It gave us a chance to
reflect on the proposed course
of our life. Writing to your fu-
ture self gives you insight.
Think of it as your own time
In a powerful video, Alicia Keys
GO BACK TO THE the multi-Grammy winner
OLD WAYS talked about the words we need
Old is the new to delete from our dictionary. Keys,
new. Take time to who gave up makeup last year says
rewind to the ways that she believes in the power of
our parents or words. Earlier, she would use
grandparents lived. phrases like Well, you know my
Eat the way our fore- luck or Probably with my
fathers did (paleo diet, luck. Her writing partner asked
anyone), get a radio or her to stop. His rationale: thats
READ ONLINE PALATE
When was the last time you hand- Food is more than just sus-
wrote something anything?
tenance; its a reason of be-
Handwriting is a dying art, even at schools.
Do you know that your hand is distinctive ing. You have a
to you as personal as your voice or finger- tongue that has a
prints. Handwriting expert Rafiullah Baig million tastebuds
says that its important to preserve ones challenge it with dif-
handwriting, as its a representation of your
ferent cuisines, new
personality from the sub-conscious. His ad-
vice: Write a full page every day. Handwriting ingredients and exerimen-
helps us to exercise body and mind as they come tal dishes. Be a curious epicurean.
together on the paper. A reason why meditating You need: A cast-iron stomach.

16
through writing exists. Writing by hand

PIC: GETTY IMAGES

capsule. Give yourself ad-
vice, talk about life goals
personal and profession-
al, your anxieties, re-
a turntable or get a ter-
race garden to make your
own produce. Try out old
grains like millets and do
how it will be, if you say thats
how its going be. The big idea:
rethink your words. Use
when instead of if, can you
helps you think more sequentially and
keeps your mind active. Start small,
START A PHOTO OR
maybe a list. Item #1: pen and paper! TRAVEL PROJECT
You need: A pen and paper. Use your imagination

12 14
like the #followmeto fel-
grets, your ideal life, a gadget audit, make instead of should. Because low or start chronicling your year,
books you are read- your own soap, try words that we speak, things we START/TAKE PART IN AN MAKE A one photo a day. Think up a travel
ing and impor- your moms sari there say every day is you INTERNET TREND YOUTUBE VIDEO project. From travelling solo in
tant people in are ideas galore. building your road with Last year, challenges like man- If you watched pen and Siberia to following your favourite
apple song, and liked it (theres no travel book, or blogging a family
your life. You need: A com- those words. nequin challenge, water bottle flip, push-
hope for you), you know that mak- road trip from Ludhiana to London
You need: A mitment to a more You need: To rethink your up challenge saw people get creative. ing music and a video is as start travelling, start thinking.
clear head. natural way of life. mental dictionary. You need: To hunt for viral ideas. easy as eating an apple. You need: Smart hashtagging.

2 8 10 17
Music videos, vlogs
FLIRT GO MINIMAL CHANGE YOUR LOOK, DRASTICALLY (video blogs), cats DISCONNECT
For some time now, millennials Lifes too short for boring clothes and hair. Go for a snoozing, cats rolling,
Research has proven that Silicon Valley investor
have been trying out minimal- drastic hair colour, asymmetric hair style or just a new kids doing all the
flirting helps things cats are do- Sam Altman recently
ism the Japanese art of declut- wardrobe. But before any major makeover, sleep on it.
to boost your tering and organising. It inspired Give yourself a week or two to make sure you arent being im- ing the YouTube is tweeted: Digital
self-esteem, people to move into tiny homes, pulsive. Start with simple tweaks. So, before chopping your hair, try the final resting addiction is go-
cut their wardrobes and donate wearing your hair up. Before going for a piercing, use some clip-ons. place for all this. It
improves your ing to be one
their possessions. The idea: spend But keep it realistic. If you cant wear tattoos has made stars out of
mood as it ac- nobodies. of the great
on experiences, not on stuff. to work, dont go for a visible one.
tivates your You need: A realisation that You need: An adventurous spirit. You need: Wacky m e n t a l
pleasure receptors theres more to life than ideas. health crises

13
and reduces stress. Even possessions. of our time.
if you are in a relation- DARE TO CHANGE reer or your outlook. Like designer and former Its time to hear
ship, you can indulge Change is hard. Really party girl Malini Ramani who gave up all the voices in your head. Cut down
in harmless flirting. hard. If you have ever things glitzy for some inner peace. Shes now on your virtual dependence. Start
You need: A ready wit. tried to quit a bad habit, youd teaching kundalini yoga and says it brought small: switch off your cellphone

3
know it. But if you are looking to balance back to her life. Taking a step to a new once you are at home, or take
START A COLLECTION change, a new year is the best you is not be easy, but its not unachievable. gadget-free vacations.
Collectors collect for reasons intrinsic and time. It could be giving up a You need: To read our new column on how You need: A strong will to pull
extrinsic. The latter is when you collect to habit, changing your ca- people changed their life on page 2. the plug.
profit from it in some way. Here, the connect
with the collection is less emotional. But if you
want to collect for intrinsic reasons, it can be
fun, and can help you relax. People collect
things that appeal aesthetically or emotionally
to them brooches, badges, match boxes. Col-
lect souvenirs for nostalgia things you loved
as a child but did not have the capability to ob-
PIC:S THINKSTOCK

tain. For a collector, building up a collection

gives them satisfaction.
You need: A packrat mentality, patient partner.

4
TAKE A SURVIVAL
COURSE
News of terror at-
tacks, bomb-
ings makes us inse-
cure. Then
theres Moth-
er Nature
going hay-
wire cy-
clones,
climate
change, solar storms. Cultivate
your survival skills. Learn how to
start a fire, wield a knife and eat
what you scrounge. Or enrol in a
self-defence course.
You need: A survival handbook.

5 TAKE AN
ONLINE COURSE
We can all do with
some new skills. Plus: its
short, its free. Its inclusive:
an English graduate can
brush up on quantum
physics basics. And it has
backing of biggies like Stan-
ford, MIT.
You need: A good net con-
nection and a course site.

6 COMMIT TO
A PET
Peanuts creator
Charles M. Schulz said:
Happiness is a warm pup-
py. A 2002 US study found
improvements in heart rate
and blood pressure among
people who had a dog or cat,
compared to those who did
not. Now companies like Bor-
rowMyDoggy and DogVacay
are using websites and apps
to connect pet owners with
people living
nearby
who love
animals
but cant
spare the
time or ex-
pense of
owning
one.
You
need: To
adopt
not
shop.