For several years in the past I have thought about my New Year’s resolutions for a few minutes on New Year’s Eve, but nothing ever stuck. Just like about every other person in the world, I wanted to lose weight, but it was never just that easy.

As I began my freshman year of college, I knew I could not afford to gain the freshman 15. Although other people may not have considered me to be overweight, deep down I always knew I was. I began to change my eating habits (although that was not too difficult for me as I am a picky eater and forced to eat in the dining hall with a lot of gross food) and I began to be mindful as I snacked or treated myself to sweet drinks after a long day of classes. Over the course of my semester I had already lost 12 pounds. I guess following your New Year’s resolutions really can help.

As the New Year rolled around the corner once again, I of course thought about losing more weight but I was also wondering why I had such high stress levels in the previous six months. Starting school in a completely new place where you only know a few people is never easy but I wanted to be happier. I thought about it for days and as simple and as stupid as it may be, I decided that 2017 would be the year that I smiled more.

At first it was kind of difficult. Not because I was sad or mad, but because I am known for having an RBF (resting b**** face). After a couple days I began to get into the swing of things, and little did I know, not only was I helping myself, but the people around me seemed to be so much happier. My sister and I decided to travel on one of the busiest days of the year, January 2^nd, where the lines for check in were out the doors and it was very difficult to direct yourself from place to place. For some reason, due to the fact people could tell I was happy, many people decided to ask us for directions around the airport. I may have been easy to talk to, but I think next year my New Year’s resolution will be to figure out how to properly get around Newark Airport! However, this made me feel so good. It had been a day, and I was already changing the lives of the people I was surrounded by, and my overall happiness.

The thing I want you to take away from this is not that you need to be constantly smiling all the time, but that the little things you change about yourself can affect the way that people perceive you, and that little things can go a long way. Little did I know that after a month of starting my New Year’s resolution, I would be the happiest I have been in an extremely long time.