It is New Years Eve, 11:59 P.M. We eagerly gather around the television, anticipating the beginning of 2016. As we countdown from five… four… three… two… one, I realize that we are holding onto some fantasy that once we hit January first, we will be completely different people. We will be the strong, healthy, well-groomed, put-together people that we idolize on television and in magazines. Gone are the last-minute all-nighters to finish papers and projects, the weekend-long Netflix binges, the 2 A.M pizza and beer combination. We are given a pass to start anew, another year to recreate ourselves.
But as the clock strikes midnight and the fireworks shake the house, I vow to not make any resolutions this year.
This is not a new year, new me scenario.
If anything, this is a new year, same me goal.
We have this idea that the resolutions we set will help us become the people that we want to be. We write out our goals and stick them to our fridges, inside of our notebooks, and even on our mirrors so we see them every day: exercise five times a week, stop drinking soda and eating processed food, stop procrastinating on projects and homework, get at least eight hours of sleep. The list goes on and on, until we are overwhelmed with just how much we would like to change about ourselves and our lifestyles.
I believe that resolutions set us up for failure. Most resolutions we set for the new year are long forgotten by the time spring rolls around, once we get back into our normal routines after the holiday season. This isn’t because we are incapable of change or that we will forever be stuck as who we are at the beginning of the year, but that we tend to forget that we are only human.
We are driven by routine, startled by immense change, and reprimanded by ourselves when we cannot accomplish the strict goals we set. If we try to change so much at once, we will be more susceptible to remaining the same.
Which wouldn’t be so terrible, because we should be proud of who we are. Why should we feel obligated to set such high standards for ourselves and change? Who are our resolutions truly for, ourselves or others?
Let us not forget that while change in a necessity in the journey of our lives, this change must come gradually and not just at the beginning of the new year. If you feel as though you need resolutions, check back in with them every few months. Set yourself small, attainable goals that can be adjusted as time goes on and as life happens. And when you start to become anxious about the faltering of your goals, pause, turn around, and see how far you have come.
Vow to not change yourself this year, but to become a better version of yourself.
