The new year is approaching. Everyone is making resolutions and stating that 2016 is going to be "their year." Some of us want to lose weight, save money, get healthy, boost our GPAs or spend more time with our friends and family. These are all great aspirations, but many of us find ourselves falling short in pursuit of these goals. It doesn't have to be this way.

Sure, 2016 may have had it's pitfalls. You may have struggled with finding motivation, you may be suffering from a long-term illness, maybe you lost someone you care about. No matter how perfect someone's life may seem on the surface, everyone is going through some sort of struggle in their life. Things like this are not easy to deal with and affect us all in varying degrees. They may hinder us, but they don't have to stop us from reaching our goals.

So many things are out of our control. I promise you, this is the one thing that will remain constant in our lives. Some years may be worse than others. Large goals may seem difficult to accomplish. However, a large part of someone's success and happiness comes from what they do for themselves.

The upcoming year is particularly significant for me. I will be beginning my internship this summer, networking and finally gaining experience in my field. I will be graduating college a semester early. I will start applying for "real jobs." Naturally, I am anxious about this, as well as extremely excited.

A lot of where this next year takes me will be determined by myself. If I work hard in school to maintain or boost my GPA, do well at my internship and make an effort to network and apply to as many jobs as possible, my chances of success are much greater. If I become lazy with school and work, don't plan ahead and act quickly when submitting job applications, my chances of success are obviously much smaller. Even if I do everything I can, success is not guaranteed. (especially not intermediately) Other factors and major life events can also have an effect on my personal success, but they will only lead to failure when you let yourself give up completely.

Successful people don't give up and never stop working hard. Everything in life is earned. It may be easier for some people than others, but that is not the point. Don't let one (or even several) failures make you quit. Be flexible, change your plans when necessary. If you want something, whatever it is you need to put yourself out there. Breaking routine is crucial. If you keep the same routine and habits, your life will never change for the better. Get off your couch and do things that challenge you. Good things don't come to those who wait, they come to those who work their butt off for them.