By Domanique Crawford
This sounds familiar, right?
You wake up and smell the fresh air. It’s a new day, a new year, and there’s definitely going to be a new you. You whip out a pen and paper to jot down your master list of improvements. When you’ve completed the list, you feel that just by writing it down that you are a champion and have already accomplished something.
You post the list on the fridge to remind you of your goals. One week passes. Two. Finally three. The list has fallen to the ground and been trampled so much, its only refuge is the crevice that divides the countertop and refrigerator.
Following through with resolutions is harder than actually making them, and though the first month might be hard going, there are 11 more months that you are still able to work with.
Lorenz Hernandez, Humboldt State environmental resources engineering major, said alternatively to creating a list of things to start on, she makes a list of things that can be improved.
“I start a new journal,” Hernandez said, “and January first, I actually write a note to myself and actually say what I want to do that year.”
Hernandez uses the journal to monitor the negative and positive experiences when working toward achieving her resolutions throughout the entire year.
What is the point of New Year’s resolutions if we seldom take the time to fulfill them?
New Year’s resolutions today are a way of self-motivation to stimulate personal improvement. Ironically, statistics show only 45 percent of Americans say they will make a resolution, while 8 percent of people will keep them. Considering that New Year’s resolutions are self-imposed, it makes me think our resolution should be something we will actually accomplish.
Marc Ornear, a student in the teaching credential program, suggests reaching for smaller, very specific goals that are easier to achieve. This way, he doesn’t feel the pressure of failure.
“I come up with very vague [goals] that are not very solidified,” Ornear said. “Like, try to get more exercise time in or try to get more relaxation time in.”
Rather than losing exactly 20 pounds, promise yourself that you are going to simply start exercising. Now don’t get crazy and plan to work out 10 hours a week/five times a day. Again keep, it simple; maybe 30 minutes, three days a week.
When choosing your resolutions, we must remember that change is a long and ever-evolving process. It can’t be completed overnight. Sometimes we fail on the first try but don’t give up. Or give in.
Rachel Bowkley is another HSU student in the teaching credential program.
“I got disenchanted because it doesn’t feel like it’s new,” Bowkley said. “It’s just sort of the same stuff. I try to improve throughout every year and just use the new year as, what could I do better this year instead of continuing what I did last year.”
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