By: Jada Pan, Staff Writer
As the clock strikes midnight and fireworks light up the night, the new year is welcomed with excitement. Seeing the new year as a fresh start, people around the world set New Year’s resolutions—hopeful promises of self-improvement and growth. In reality though, most resolutions fail to make it past the first week of January.
Despite its long history, the effectiveness of New Year’s resolutions is often called into question. Many people struggle to keep their resolutions and fall into an all-or-nothing mindset, giving up in face of unrealistic goals. So, have New Year’s resolutions really lost their power or is there a better way to create meaningful, lasting change?
Rooted in the ancient Babylonian custom, the origin of this global tradition dates back about 4,000 years and has evolved and endured the test of time. During their 12-day new year festival known as Akitu, Babylonians would make promises to the gods to gain their blessing and favor. In contrast to modern resolutions, these vows were tied to practical goals such as returning borrowed farming tools and paying off debts.
Over time, this tradition has evolved into a secular, more personal practice focusing on self-improvement. The most common resolutions are centered around health, such as exercising and losing weight. Others strive for personal development through learning new hobbies, reading more, and getting more organized. So why are so many of these resolutions short-lived?
Natalie Lo (11) shared her thoughts on why New Year’s resolutions are so difficult to keep. “For me personally, I think it’s because there’s no one to keep me in check. It’s not like homework… Setting your own resolutions and following them with no one other than yourself is hard.“
Like Lo, many also find it hard to follow through with their resolution without the support or even pressure of others. Therefore, consider sharing a goal with a friend or family member, so you can offer each other motivation and support. This way, you can work together and make it a fun, social activity while still holding each other accountable.
For some, however, the issue is due to an all-or-nothing mindset, especially with unrealistic goals. This leads to burnout and can result in giving up entirely even sooner. If they fail or forget their resolution once, they feel as though they’ve already failed completely, resulting in abandoned resolutions.
To combat this, a better approach is to focus on your intentions over outcomes. “If you yourself, just think of the exercise as like just for the physical aspect and looking good…Then what’s driving you is your physical appearance,” said Dana Yan, a junior. “That may not be as good as like, ‘Oh, you’re doing this for your health’ for like the future. I think if you, depending how you rethink your goals and how you reframe them, it really affects whether you achieve them or not.”
At the same time, breaking a long-term or big goal into smaller, more manageable goals is another great way to prevent burnout. Everyday goals, especially for those who are busy, may become overwhelming as they are harder to achieve. Rather than seven times a week, adjust the goal to four times, allowing yourself to have three days of rest and the flexibility for other responsibilities you have.
Celebrating little wins along the way is another great way to help keep your resolution, especially for long-term goals. By rewarding yourself for these successes, you give yourself more motivation to keep going, encouraging lasting personal growth. This is particularly helpful in the early stages of a goal, acting as a kickstart and maintaining momentum.
“What I’ve noticed this works for me is having kind of like, not a reward system, but once you do it, then you can reward yourself with something else,” said Yan. “Then make it bi-weekly, or for that one specific goal, then a month. And then if it works out, then maybe I’ll increase the duration of the goal to two months.”
This year, let’s not give up in January. Shift your focus to the intentions behind your goals, break big goals into smaller steps, and celebrate the small wins. Rather than perfection, your progress is more important as you turn resolutions into lasting habits. With this in mind, make 2025 the year you keep your resolutions!
