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Instead of resolutions, why not try a year of "challenges" in 2023?

Instead of resolutions, try new challenges for 2023
Instead of resolutions, try new challenges for 2023 05:04

MINNEAPOLIS -- The new year symbolizes a fresh start to many. It's a popular time to make promises to ourselves -- resolutions of what we will or won't do in the new year.

Scott Moss, of Minneapolis, doesn't care for resolutions. Instead, he spend 2022 trying something different. WCCO's Erin Hassanzadeh caught up with him following his year of "challenges."

"I didn't really have an end goal in mind, which sounds kind of crazy, but I just wanted to see what would happen," Moss said.

First up was a dry January, a month without any alcohol. After that, February was a month of only cold showers.

"I think it's a true test of discipline if you can take cold showers," Moss, a Minnesotan, said. "It really helped me be more alert when I took them, and so it provided me with a natural energy boost."

In March came daily meditation.

"What I found was anxiety wasn't necessarily my super power. Hard work and dedication was, and that's something everybody can build to and strive for," Moss said.

In April, Moss committed to reading daily.

"This was a fun one for me because I really enjoy reading. And that's the fun thing about the challenge year -- it's not just about pushing yourself, it's about making time for the things you enjoy, the hobbies you have out there," Moss said. "The difficult thing about this was trying to find the 30 minutes I needed."  

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Scott Moss CBS

In May, Moss rediscovered his love for writing, which he said ended up being more than 30 minutes a day. June was 20 minutes of daily trash pick-up.

"I live in Uptown, so I just walked out my front door and started picking up trash for 20 minutes a day," he said. "I'd say every two times or two someone would ask me what I'm doing. They'd be like, 'Are you getting paid to do this? Is this community service? Are you being punished?' I'm like, 'Nope.'"

In July, Moss went from a pot of coffee every day to no caffeine whatsoever. He called it the hardest challenge, even compared to those winter cold showers. He skipped meat for the month of August, and in September he put down the smart phone entirely.

He then rounded out the year with daily letters of gratitude to family and friends.

"Doing something or giving something up intentionally for a year, it kind of just lets me know I can do whatever I set my mind to," Moss said. "Everyone is in a different spot in their life. Maybe they're not ready for a full year of challenges. Maybe they're not ready for something every single day, but maybe they can try something ... different for a week."

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