The New Year has come and passed.
Like every new year, I make New Year’s resolutions. I know that there are people out there who don’t believe in New Year’s resolutions because it has never really worked for them. For some reason, that annoys me a little because I feel like they give up too easily.
For me, I find that having New Year’s resolutions is useful. It helps me shape my year and gives me a direction of how my year will be. A New Year’s resolution doesn’t have to be something different or something weird every year. Sometimes, my New Year’s resolutions are the ones from the previous year because I haven’t quite achieved them.
It just makes me a little upset when people won’t give new year resolutions a chance because they think it’s either overrated or that it doesn’t work for them. New Year’s resolutions are not a to-do list that you make in the beginning of the year and when you can’t achieve them, scrap it and then claim that New Year’s resolutions don’t work.
That’s not quite how it works.
There will be some days where you don’t do what you have planned out in your New Year’s resolutions. There will be some days where it looks like you have failed in your resolutions.
But you don’t give up.
Instead, you tell yourself that it’s alright and tomorrow, you try again.
You keep at this until the end of the year.
Then, you look back and chart back your progress.
Progress is what matters. I know that achieving the New Year’s resolution is important, however, even if you didn’t manage to achieve it, it’s alright. You can always do it next year. As long as there is progress, it means you are getting there and that’s what matters.
For me, this year, one of my new year resolutions is to control my emotions. The reason for this is because my emotions go all over the place easily. So when I study, whenever I hit a tough chapter, I panic very quickly and easily. Personally, I want to stop them because if I could study more calmly I would be more productive and I wouldn’t be emotionally so tired.
I must admit that it is not easy trying to stay calm. It’s an up and down journey and I am working on it. I just need to take one step at a time.
Anyhow, having a new year resolution is sort of like having a little reminder of how you want this year to be and what you want it to be. Personally, I don’t think it’s a bad thing to have a direction for the year.
Carmen is studying the BSc Economics and Management at a recognised centre in Malaysia.
Carmen, you make a valid point. I think New Years Resolutions were sold to us as ‘wishes for the new year’ and not a concrete goal which has a strategy behind it’s achievement. As long as you are pursuing a resolution which is worthy of your time and refection then that’s a goal.