20 changes you need to make in your life in 2020

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In 2020, you should consider making small changes to your life to ensure happiness and good health.
Healthwise, stop counting calories, stop watching the number on the scale, and instead, add protein to your diet, and start meal prepping.
Financially, consider improving your credit score and try to use your credit card more.
At work, ask for a promotion, strive for a work/life balance, and cut out toxic coworkers.
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At the start of each New Year, people make dramatic resolutions and typically fail to stick to them. Instead, you should be thinking about ways you can make small, positive changes to your life.

This year you can amend your sleeping habits, you can think about dieting differently, you can start a financial budget, you can ask for a raise at work, and you can stop using plastic goods.

Here are 20 small changes you can make so that you can live a happier life in 2020.

This year, stop worrying about numbers on the scale.

Weighing yourself is not a useful method to track progress. If you're just worrying about numbers on the scale, you're not taking into account your body composition, how your body feels, and your overall health. In fact, constantly weighing yourself could be unhealthy.

"Often, I've seen minor fluctuations on the scale make or break someone's day," registered dietitian Rachael Hartley told Insider reporter Cameron Evans. "If they wake up and see a low number on the scale, they may overeat or choose 'bad' foods as a way of celebrating. Or, if they wake up and see that their number is higher than they wanted to see, they might give up on the healthy changes that they're working on."

Commit to exercising for 30 minutes, four times per week.

Health and fitness expert Jillian Michaels told Insider that she works out four days a week and rests for the other three. She breaks up her workouts to focus on individual parts of her body to ensure the best results.

Stop counting calories.

Counting calories is not a full-proof way to lose weight. Ken Immer, president and chief culinary officer of Culinary Health Solutions, told Insider that calorie counting is actually much more complicated than some think, leading many to do it wrong. It can also lead to unhealthy outlooks on food.

"It's important to keep our relationship with food a very positive one," Immer said. "These associations can ruin our outlook on something that we cherish in life, and that's unsustainable."

Start introducing more protein into your diet.

"High-protein foods are great for recovery from exercise and also help to keep you full for longer since protein takes longer to digest than carbohydrates," registered dietitian Jenn Fillenworth told Insider reporter Courtney Levia. "This is why a bowl of cereal in the morning sends you on a snack hunt way before lunch while eggs for breakfast stay with you longer."

Cook at least three meals a day at home instead of ordering out.

"By cooking more often at home, you have a better diet at no significant cost increase, while if you go out more, you have a less healthy diet at a higher cost," Adam Drewnowski, director of the University of Washington's Center for Public Health Nutrition, said.

Financially, start the new year off by creating a personal budget.

Two in five adults in the US have and use a personal budget, according to the 2018 NFCC study.

"Budgeting gives you control of your money," Ryan Guina, the founder of Cash Money Life and The Military Wallet, said. "You tell your money where to go, instead of wondering where it went. You can use your budget to shape your spending to reflect what is most important in your life."

Work on improving your credit score by paying bills on time.

To ensure you pay your bills on time, start by making a list of every bill you have to pay and start adding them to your calendar. You should also consider setting up automatic payments whenever possible so that you can ensure you never miss a payment.

"Automate regularly occurring monthly bills," Emily Stroud, a chartered financial analyst, told Credit Karma. "It's just too easy to get distracted and forget to write a check or get to the post office."

Start using your credit card instead of your debit card so that you can earn more points.

While using your credit card more often can protect your bank account and help you build a credit history, the biggest perk is that you can earn points. If you choose the right credit card that fits your lifestyle, you can rack up a bunch of points that can buy you a free trip or luxury item.

Set a bedtime during the week and stick to it.

Although many think bedtimes are for children, adults can also benefit from setting a time to go to sleep each night.

"Based on your wake up time, work backward to determine your appropriate bedtime, keeping in mind that most adults need between seven and nine hours of sleep,"Dr. Whitney Roban, family sleep specialist, told Insider. "One hour before this predetermined bedtime set an alarm to signal that you should begin to engage in only quiet and relaxing activities."

Turn off your electronics one hour before going to sleep.

Ariana Huffington told CNBC she gets a great night's sleep when she turns off all of her electronics before going to bed. The National Sleep Foundation, in fact, recommends you shut off your phone and other electronics at least a half-hour before you actually go to sleep for a better night's rest.

Instead of texting before bed, challenge your mind by reading more.

While Netflix and other streaming services make bingeing extremely easy, reading a great book can be just as entertaining. Not to mention, people who read daily live longer. According to a 2016 Yale University study, those who read 30 minutes per day lived on average a year or so more than those who don't read.

At work, don't be afraid to fight for what you deserve.

Whether you're asking for a raise, a promotion, or for more respect, it's important that you speak up in the workplace.

"The important thing to remember is that if you don't ask the answer is always no," Joanna Echols, a career and wellness coach, told Business Insider reporter Rachel Premack.

Focus on keeping a healthy work/life balance this year.

Although achieving the perfect work/life balance can be difficult and looks different for everyone, it's important to focus on it in the new year. Try setting a certain time to leave work every day, make it your mission to not check your work email while at home, or maybe unplug completely when you're not in the office.

If you're at a job that does not prioritize work/life balance, then look elsewhere and only consider jobs that do.

Distance yourself from toxic coworkers.

You spend the most amount of time with the people you work with, so you should surround yourself with coworkers who motivate and inspire you in the workplace. If there's someone who keeps bringing you down, criticizing your work, or constantly complaining, it may be time to ask for some space.

In your romantic life, try to be more independent and stop depending on your lover for validation.

When in a relationship, it's easy to become codependent.

"The [codependent person] wants reassurance. It's really about a sense of fear inside and they don't want to take any risks, so they need to check with a significant person in their life to feel safe," relationship therapist Bukky Kolawole told Insider reporter Julia Naftulin.

But this year, try to focus on your independence and freedom. If you find yourself looking for approval from loved ones, consider the reason behind that need.

"If you need more [approval] than you think is normal, rather than judging yourself, try to understand why," Kolawole said. "That's where therapy can be useful, to help you make sense of your needs."

Make time so that you can see your friends more this year.

Friendship has a major impact on your health. In fact, the more time you spend with your friends, the better. The Mayo Clinic found that quality friendships can help reduce stress, improve your self-confidence, help you cope with trauma, and reduce depression.

Also, make time to explore areas around your neighborhood.

Exploring the world doesn't have to mean going to an exotic island in the Mediterranean for thousands of dollars. Instead, this year, focus on exploring your own neighborhood, town, and neighboring cities.

In fact, there are places all over the US that are becoming great travel destinations in 2020.

Help the Earth this year by no longer using plastic.

Plastic is a largely useless material that harms our environment, yet plastic makes up a huge percentage of our waste — about 13%. Even more alarming, 91% of that plastic isn't even recycled. To help curb this environmental issue, consider using paper straws, buying reusable shopping bags, buying reusable water bottles, reusing containers, and buying boxes.

Likewise, start composting your waste.

Instead of throwing away your leftovers this year, consider composting. If you save your uneaten foods, you can help enrich the soil, reduce chemical fertilizers, and reduce methane.

You can begin by composting right in your own home.

Consider donating to organizations you care about.

In 2020, donate to climate change organizations so you can help people who are actively attempting to curb climate issues. If climate change doesn't interest you, think about other causes that you would want to support. All over the world, there are organizations that accept even $1.

If you can't donate financially, consider donating your time by volunteering for those organizations.