As I do every December 31st, at end of last year I decided to come up with a resolution to focus on for the upcoming year. In the past I'd always chosen resolutions that focused on things I didn't really want to improve, but figured I should probably work on. Of course, these type of resolutions usually only lasted for a few weeks at best and then I would fall back into my old ways because it wasn't something I was all that interested in in the first place. However, this year I decided my resolution should focus on doing more of something I love. That being said, I decided to challenge myself to read 52 books over the course of a year. So far, I am on track to achieve my goal, and just finished reading book 42 last night. Setting this goal for myself has taught me a lot and I wanted to share some of what I've learned.

Although it may seem like I'm pointing out the obvious, I've definitely found this to be true. As I've exposed myself to so many different types and genres of writing over the last nine months, I have definitely grown as a writer. I've been able to see examples of excellent dialogue, intricately constructed plots, and beautiful imagery. This has definitely pushed me to improve my writing style, as well as given me examples to emulate as I continue to grow as a writer.

In years past, my resolutions were always something along the lines of getting better at math, going to the gym more, or eating more vegetables. All of these are great resolutions, but I didn't love doing any of these things to begin with, so it became increasingly difficult to stick to them as the year wore on. However, this year's resolution never felt like a chore, so it made it super easy to stay committed. The ease with which I stuck to my goal showed me that if you really enjoy doing something, you're going to do it because you want to, not because you feel obligated. This definitely showed me that I don't have a difficultly committing my time to things, but that I sometimes commit to the wrong things, which can hold me back. I think that this was a really important lesson for me to learn, and something that I will definitely take into consideration when coming up with next year's resolution.

Seriously, SO much. Between school, work, and my other obligations, I knew I was going to have to use my time wisely if I wanted to reach my goal. To stay on track, my I decided to try to read roughly one book per week. When I found myself lagging behind by the end of January, I started to think about how I was spending my free time each day. I quickly realized that fifteen minutes of scrolling through social media five or ten times a day adds up, and that I could definitely use that time to be more productive. Now, if I have free time, I try to spend it reading a book rather than staring at a screen. It has caused me to be more cognizant of how much time I really was wasting, and has inspired me to be more mindful of how I spend my time in the future.

I've loved to read my entire life, but as I got older I found myself having less and less time for it. Whether it was because of schoolwork, spending time with friends, or binging Netflix, the time I spent reading continued to dwindle as time passed. Over the years, I started to forget how much I had once enjoyed reading. However, once I started working on my resolution this year, I quickly remembered my love for reading and vowed to never let it fall by the wayside again. Challenging myself to read 52 books taught me that you should never stop making time for the things that you love because they make up part of who you are.

As I mentioned above, I have a hard time sticking to resolutions. Being able to commit to this one and see it out to the end has made me really proud of myself. I've learned that it's important to do things that help you to accomplish your goals because it really does help you to gain confidence in yourself and your abilities.