Another year in the books. Time to break out of old habits and start anew, right? Whether it's losing weight, getting good grades, or sparking up old friendships, we're all alike in making a promise to our future selves to be a better version into the new year. But what happens when old habits consume us two months into our new and improved year? Most of us think, "It was a nice try, guess I'll start next year." That's completely unnecessary. It's never too late to reach your goals.

It's all about your intentions. Why workout more? Why be a better you? Find things you want to put your energy towards instead of resenting yourself for forcing it. Could you simply notice the things you want to change without any deadlines or consequences?

There wouldn't be any pressure. That could be the difference in succeeding and failing. Rather than making a resolution to work out daily, set an intention to be more active. Your overall health would benefit from it. Still, don't punish yourself when your efforts aren’t consistent. Allow yourself to be ok with not reaching your goal that day. Gradually letting go of the pressures and deadlines can allow intentions to become things to surrender to, and you'll be more likely to follow through in the end.

Some people need the clear expectations of a New Year’s resolution to jump start change, and a New Year is a logical time to think about new things and goals. Making a promise helps a lot of people feel more committed to their desired change. However, I’ve found that the endless cycle of promising change and then feeling disappointed in myself only makes change harder and overall hasn't worked.

Do you want to stop smoking? Get a degree? Start a new hobby? Start being active? Whatever your new resolution may be, make sure your intention is something you want to do, and don't shun yourself for not doing it everyday. It's all about taking steps forward AND backward in order to have the end result you're looking for – only then is change bound to happen.