I think all of us can agree that 2016 basically sucked. However, I have decided to make 2017 different and that I will not be making a new year’s resolution list. Yep, after several years of creating countless resolutions that I never follow through with, I’m calling it quits.

Just like everyone else, I have made the weight loss resolution, the one about being more organized, the one about trying new things and every other basic resolution in the book. Yet every year it’s the same story. I start January 1^st or 2^nd and for the first week things are really hard and I am probably cranky. But by the third week my resolutions have become a routine. Then, BAM! Somehow, it all goes down hill and I have fallen completely off track, life has gotten in the way and the word “resolution” doesn’t even ring a bell.

People every year decide that THIS year will be different, that they will somehow follow through with every single item on their list. Then every December year like clock work, the resolutions are unheard of. The truth is, the lists are too long, the goals are too high, life is too busy and all of it becomes unrealistic, and once people realize that, they fall off the wagon. Not to mention, we have an unfortunately unrealistic perception of time, when in fact some things simply take more time to accomplish than we might want to admit to. Therefore, when we try to squeeze any – let alone all of these things – into the time frame we feel is right, we fail.

So instead, this year I am not making resolutions. No, this year I will live my life freely. I will overcome obstacles when my mind, body and soul are ready to take on the challenge. I will think of any changes as life style changes, not “new year” changes. I will learn to push and motivate myself to reach my goals regardless of some silly list, or because it is a new year, but because I want it for myself. When I do all of these things, I find that the goals I set forth are more achievable and thus I succeed on each challenge I set a goal for, so I encourage all of you to do the same. This year shouldn’t be a new you only to create a new one next year, instead think of each goal as a life goal, to help you in the long run.