New Year Resolutions – What’s the Story?

New year New life is a quote that unanimously occupies our thoughts through innumerable ideas. The thought of the quote is accompanied by feelings of excitement, hope and joy but why are we so thrilled for the new year? If we look at it plainly, the new year is just another day.  We live on the same planet, with fixed routines to keep up to. However we humans can never regard things as is, we always attach emotions to our world views. That’s what makes us different from Agent Smith (It’s alright if you haven’t seen the matrix I’m anything but judgy. Just know that Agent Smith is a personification of everything unemotional and creepy).

Therefore we invariably consider the new year as an opportunity for a new beginning that gives us yet another chance to invite joy, peace, fulfilment and purpose into our lives. One way through which we seek to do this is by setting new year resolutions. It’s a practice that was initiated by Ancient Babylonians who made promises on the new year to return farm equipment and pay debts on time. The notion behind the practice was to stay in the good books of gods. Modern-day new year resolutions are most often directed towards the self and have a higher probability of not seeing the light of the day. 🙃 Ah! I can hear the screams of my previous year’s resolutions from inside my journal already!!

Why are we unable to meet our new year resolutions? There are two prominent reasons:

Unrealistic goals

We will never wish to see a blue moon because we know that it is simply far-fetched and impossible. Yet as we near the new year, our minds desire to set implausible new year goals. It can range from finding true love in a year to meeting the avatars of pandora. There is a reason why unrealistic is termed “UNREALISTIC” and it’s high time we realise that.

Lack of timeline

Lack of a predetermined timeline will hinder the systematic approach required to meet our new year resolutions. Like Dr. Strange we can wish to have control over time. Even so, wishful thinking is far from reality. Thus, each of our new year resolutions must encompass its own timeline to aid it bear fruit within a stipulated period.

Do we really need new year resolutions?

Let me cut to the chase. This is a debatable question but if you ask me I would say yes. Resolutions are a fun way to chase our dreams. They help us move from the state of “What it is” to “What it can be”. Over the years there’s been an underlying struggle to keep the new year resolutions, hence its significance is lost.

In 2023 I wish to revive the value of resolutions. For that reason I have devised a 3 step process to keep my new year resolutions

• Set achievable goals
• Curate a timetable
• Track the progress

It is straightforward and easy to follow. You are welcome to keep to the same approach if you desire to bring your resolutions to life. Here’s wishing you a Happy and Prosperous New Year 2023!!☺️