It’s the first day of 2019 — I know for a fact that people are setting resolutions, creating goals to crush, and idealizing the possibilities that await in this new year.
I used to be one of those people. I would create a list of resolutions for each year, and break down my plan of attack for each goal. My list would look something like this:
Goal 1: Lose 15 lbs.
Plan: Improve Diet
- Cook 80% of all meals/Limit outside foods
- Eat at regular intervals to limit mindless snacking or hunger binges
- Eat a minimum of two servings of vegetables at every meal
Plan: Increase Exercise
- Go to 3 yoga classes/week
- Run on treadmill 2x/week
- Weight train 2x/week
You get the idea. It was a meticulous approach to my goals. And it was a rare occasion that I didn’t accomplish what I hoped to accomplish for any given year.
But as I grew older, I lost my desire to set resolutions. And when I did, I lost my drive to actually honor them. I began to realize that this date, this “New Year,” is arbitrary. It is a calendar date. It has no real meaning to me as an individual. January 1 is just any other day — aside from the fact that most of the bakeries near me are closed, and I don’t usually have to work on that day.
Personally, my date of birth holds more weight as a point of reference. So for those of you who struggle to hold yourselves accountable with your New Year resolutions, consider the fact that this date has no personal meaning to you. You might have better luck using a different metric — the time between each birth anniversary.
And I would also evaluate the goals that you do set for yourself. Do you set the same goals every single year, only to continuously fail on the follow through? Maybe that goal itself isn’t one that truly resonates with you. Maybe you’re allowing others to inform what you think should be important to you (yes, health is important, but maybe “eating healthier” just isn’t a goal that is important enough to warrant space on your Great Annual Feats list).
We live in an era of pushing boundaries. Of going against the grain. The setting of resolutions may just be yet another aspect of our habits as a culture that we can re-evaluate. I encourage you to play with this concept and see what happens.
