Let me start with a confession - I love Netflix. I used to binge watch anything from Black Mirror, feeling all futuristic and intellectual while commenting how we most likely live in a simulation, to Revenge, plotting ways to get back at people who didn't show up to my last party.

The truth is though, that while indulging in series and having some pizza on the side could feel wonderful, it didn't help me grow in any way. I challenged myself at the beginning of January to do these 5 things instead of in order to be more successful.

I read more

This one seems so simple, yet we consistently fail to do it. As President Truman put it: "Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers."

I switched from Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt to old-school classics like "Of Mice and Men," motivational books or really anything Tony Robbins ever wrote, and even got into attempting to decipher hidden book meanings by reading titles like "literary analysis a Rose for Emily."

So where did this take me?

image via Life of Pix

After the third week of my experiment, my mindset began to shift. I was paying a whole more attention in conversations with others and able to respond better, since I had read a whole lot on emotional intelligence and conversations.

Perhaps even better, since Netflix was a forbidden temptation, I actually sought contact with real people in order to entertain myself. My obsession with Tony Robbins even got me to start an online business, which meant doing actual work as a hobby and making money instead of wasting time.

I listened to podcasts

This was a great Netflix-replacement as I still got entertained, but could also be doing a million other things while listening.

For a month, I'd just play an episode from Tim Ferriss' The Four Hour Workweek podcast and go do my hike or clean the apartment.

Contrary to what I thought, I didn't miss any of the visuals that came with Netflix series. In fact, I absorbed much more information without the distractions and got twice as many things done.

I watch TED talks

And when I did want the visuals, I'd play a TED talk. Those little lectures are hands-down the best and most relatable way for me to learn anything from why us, millennials don't completely suck, to how to program my mind and make my subconscious work for me in business and relationships.

Watching TED talks instead of imaginary Netflix series helped me get a massive dose of inspiration. Seeing how a girl can go from having absolutely nothing in Kyrgyzstan to being a successful millionaire business coach got me a hell of a lot more pumped than watching Limitless.

I hiked 4 times a week

Hiking is extremely underrated. We all want to feel happier and get our bums to be fitter, but that ain't gonna happen by sitting on the couch series-binging for five hours a night.

I decided to replace my Netflix time sink with one active hobby, so hiking was an easy choice since nature is proven to ease our mind and climbing rocks and hills is a great gym replacement.

photo via Nina Uhlikova

The end result after a month is that I lost two pounds and my anxiety went down. Even if I do return to Netflix eventually, I'll dedicate half of that time to the outdoors.

I took dance lessons

This one was a personal challenge I had wanted to do for a while. Instead of spending my evenings after work on the couch with Netflix, I signed up for workshops on salsa and to my surprise, discovered that I can move both my legs in a pretty coordinated way.

A month into the lessons, my social circle of friends has doubled, I feel great after each session, and have developed some much-needed grace of movement.

So, if you're looking for a resolution that would make you better, will be challenging but doable, feel free to cop mine.

Give up Netflix for a month and see what happens.