It's that time of year again, "New Year, new me!" I never understood why people have the brilliant idea to change their lives around the first of the year. Shouldn't change be constant throughout your life and not be dependent on a single date?

Each year, thousands of Americans list out a long list of what they're going to change in the upcoming year. For over 100,000 of those Americans, their New Year's resolutions won't stick. The main reason why is because many Americans set goals but they don't have a plan for how to achieve them, or they have the same goals every single year. "I want to be healthy." "I want to make more money." "I want to lose weight."

I've thought long and hard about my experience with 2016. It was definitely a crazy rollercoaster of a year that threw me for a loop. I had mostly good experiences riddled with a couple of bad experiences and "bad people." Nonetheless, I am grateful for each experience because each one brought me a step closer to the person I am today. Here are some of my New Year's resolutions. Here's to a New Year but a constantly changing me.

1. I want to have more gratitude.

Have you ever heard of the Law of Attraction? The Law of Attraction in it's simplest form states that, "What we think about, we bring about." So, when we constantly are having bad, negative thoughts about the people, things and experiences in our lives, we bring about and attract more things to complain about. Changing your mindset is simple. Each day, find at least one thing to be grateful for. It could be that you are given eyes to see the beauty of the world, a roof over your head, your enrollment at SDSU or something as simple as lungs to breathe in oxygen. When you start to count your blessings, you find more things to be grateful for. This is a simple resolution. It's just about changing your perspective and your mindset and choosing to be positive and grateful for everything that comes your way instead of negative and bitter.

2. Call my family more often.

If 2016 has taught me anything this year, it has taught me that your family won't be around forever. When my Grampa passed away in November, it was a shock to me. Yes, I knew that he had pancreatic cancer, but I always thought that he'd make it through. In my eyes, my Grampa was the most amazing, strong and loving man that I have ever met. He loved his family with every bone in his body and I never thought that we would lose him so soon. My biggest regret was that I didn't call or come home as often as I could have. I know that he loved me regardless, but family is important to me. That is why one of my New Year's resolutions is to keep in contact with my family. You never know how much you'll miss hearing their voice over the phone until they're gone.

3. Tell my friends how much I love and appreciate them.

I am truly blessed to have such an amazing group of friends. The pictures above are just a few women that have come into my life and changed it for the better. These women have lit a fire in my soul, one that can never be extinguished. I know that these girls will be by my side through thick and thin, in sickness and in health, and will read whatever screenshots that I send their way. I cannot fathom my everyday life without my best friends and I don't even want to think about it.

4. To do something that makes me happy every single day.

What I've learned so far in my life is that happiness is a choice. Regardless of what your current circumstance is, you can choose to either let it determine your happiness or not. For 2017, I choose happiness over everything. Life is too short to be anything but happy.

5. I want to spend my time and money on experiences rather than materialistic things.

When I have looked at my expenses from this past year, I noticed that I spent my money on clothes, food and other things that shan't be named. My goal this year is to spend my money on people and experiences that I love. My dream has always been to travel the world- 2017 is looking like the year to do so.

6. To love myself for who I am and to be gentle and patient with myself, on the areas where I need improvement and give myself kind and honest appraisal of my progress.

If 2016 has taught me anything, it's that I am important and that it's necessary to be a little selfish sometimes. I am so blessed to have been given the opportunity to see another year. While I know that I'm not perfect, my goal is to constantly be evolving every day. Each day I want to be a better woman than the day before. That first starts with loving myself for the woman that I was and the woman that I am today.

I have no idea what 2017 has in store for me, but I'm ready and I accept the challenge.