I believe that the purpose of New Year’s Resolution is to help us become better versions of ourselves. However, I also feel like these resolutions give us a sense of a new beginning, and another chance to accomplish the things that we didn’t the year before.
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think New Year’s Resolutions are necessarily bad. Resolutions to eat healthier, exercise more, and so on are all very wonderful endeavors to undertake. At the same time, though, I feel like there is so much misconstrued when it comes to the promises we make for the new year.
The entire “new year, new me” saying is such a cliche, but at the same time, I know that people really do try to reinvent themselves with the dawn of a new year. We have come to believe that a flip of a calendar maintains a supernatural power that gives a single day more weight than others. Many people believe that January 1st is the instant journey to a new and improved version of themselves.
But technically, we are growing physically and mentally every single day. Our experiences over time are what mold us and what makes dynamic individuals, not New Year’s Day. I have such a problem with this because people undermine their growth whenever they fail to stick with their resolutions. If you didn’t stick with healthy eating or going to the gym three times a week, you might think you’ve failed to make any sort of change in your life for the new year — and then you end up counting on the next year for change.
It is a vicious cycle, and it’s quite toxic. With 2017 will come an abundance of highs and lows, all of which will contribute to self improvement. What I think we should all do, instead of counting on our resolutions to make a drastic change, is try to make the best out of these situations. Try to be more patient, more kind, more generous, more understanding, and more forgiving in the worst of situations. You might experience heartbreak and disappointment, but try to realize that you’re going to come out stronger.
In general, I don’t think we should measure our value based on whether or not we followed through with our New Year’s resolutions. Our lives aren’t bucket lists in which we're constantly aiming to cross things off. Our character development is not linear. I think we should have these goals, but we shouldn’t be upset with ourselves if they don't pan out the way we expected. And we shouldn’t be upset if the entire year isn’t completely uphill, because realistically, it’s kind of impossible to go twelve months without a few bad days. The way that we decide to approach these bad times is what’s going to matter in the end.
In the year 2016, like many people, I experienced a lot of heartbreak and sadness. But I know it just tested my resilience, and would you look at that — I’m still alive and healthy! All I want in 2017 is to take everything I learned in 2016 and apply it to my daily life. I don’t we should see it as a “fresh start,” but instead view it as building on the person that we already are. With this mindset, we’re acknowledging that there’s always room for improvement, without bagging on our genuine selves. Because I want to be kinder, take more photos and more chances, try new things, and be strong when the going gets tough. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to get fit, but I think spiritual growth is a tad more fulfilling, and will eventually show through physically as well.
Your New Year’s resolutions are not invalid. I will most likely make a few myself. But I can’t let them define me and neither should you. Exercise and eat healthy because you want to, not because you feel obligated to. When you’re excited about your goals, you’re much more likely to accomplish them. You might fail or succeed, but regardless, how you handle the outcome is what will be most influential to your character development with this new year.
