We think everyone can agree that this past year has been a lesson in even the best laid plans going awry. No one could have really planned for exactly what 2020 held. And now, going into 2021, we’re looking ahead to the new year, and we want to talk about New Year’s resolutions. Oftentimes, we go into the start of a new year with very specific, lofty goals, and then feel disappointed in ourselves when we don’t achieve them exactly as intended, or can’t sustain a major life change with no build-up for very long. The problem here may actually be the resolutions we’re making, rather than us for not keeping them. You can’t control life, and when we make pronouncements like ‘this year I’m going to run every single day’, we inevitably set ourselves up for failure that can discourage us from making progress on our goals later on. This year, with 2020’s unpredictability in mind, let’s try to make some more basic, simplistic New Year’s resolutions that are keepable.
Try For “More”
Rather than a massive overhaul that requires meeting a very specific goal, whether that’s pounds lost or books read, we should consider a more easily fulfilled goal: the word “more”. Think about going into the new year with that word in mind, rather than a big statement along the lines of “in the new year, I’m going to write a little bit every single day.” It’s hard to control every single day, and when we fail at such big, specific goals, we might feel defeated enough to give up entirely. “More” is broad: in the new year I want to cook more, read more, be more creative, eat more fruit. Doing it more than the year before is a success, even if it’s just by a little bit, and that little bit can add up to a habit that sees you doing these things more and more in the coming months and years. It’s an encouraging success -- doing it more than the last year is enough, and every time you get a little further on it, you’re just succeeding further at the goal. It’s a mindset that can lead to the genuine building of better habits.
Start Small
It can be incredibly easy to feel that the new year is the start of everything changing and set goals that are a little too ambitious right off the bat. We understand -- there’s a temptation to start strong, and finally make the changes you’ve been talking about! But it also makes it easy to burn out quickly, and it’s much harder to get that momentum back after that happens. Start slow and small, and build up towards that big ultimate goal you have. Rather than beginning with “every day”, start with a couple of times a week, and increase it as you go.
Be Kind To Yourself
The most important part of recognizing that you can’t predict the year when it comes to making your goals is to remember to be kind to yourself and give yourself leeway when you feel you’ve messed up. Succeeding at a resolution is more than just what happens on one particular day, and you’ll be a lot better at getting back up and starting again tomorrow if you forgive yourself for not always being 100% up to snuff.
Happy 2021, residents! Whatever your goals are, we wish you the best of luck in achieving them in the coming year.
