Every year we search for the perfect response to the dreaded question, “So what are your New Year’s resolutions?” For as long as I can remember, I’ve hopped on the resolution bandwagon of lying to myself and striving for an idealized version of my lifestyle that, in short, is impossible to achieve. Varying from “wear more necklaces” to “work towards self love and acceptance,” I’m no stranger to the hope that a symbolic fresh start gives. I’m not trying to discredit that, but trying to bring to light that the tragic flaw in these resolutions is the inane fact that we are too hard on ourselves when we lose a fight we had little chance of winning.
It’s common knowledge that resolutions aren’t often kept. According to the University of Scranton, 42.4% of people report never succeeding and failing to keep their resolutions each year. It’s no secret that 2016 was a generally difficult year, making musings of drastic changes for the better all the more appealing. But I think the problem with this is that we forget the whole essence of resolutions in the first place.
The Cambridge Dictionary defines a New Year’s resolution as “a promise that you make to yourself to start doing something good or stop doing something bad on the first day of the year.” And that’s the thing. It’s a promise to yourself. We put so much pressure on ourselves to achieve our resolutions that any mistake is incredibly demoralizing and we tend to give up. We forget that it should not be about being perfect, but about trying. For example, if your resolution is to eat better and on Jan. 2 you eat a donut, that doesn’t mean you automatically failed and should just fall back into old habits with the excuse of “already breaking” your resolution. After all, the University College London conducted a study and found that it takes an average time of 66 days for a habit to stick.
Having goals can be a good motivational tool but there is nothing magical about Jan 1. It is a day no different than any other. Instead of burdening ourselves with the pressure of the often unattainable expectations of New Year’s resolutions, we should set our goals at any point during the year and work diligently toward them.
