Why I Don’t Do New Year’s Resolutions

You hear it every year. Advertisements entice you to the gym, or maybe you decide to go on a diet or take up a new hobby. By February, the gyms aren’t as crowded and maybe you didn’t finish the book like you’d planned. We know this happens, so why do we make New Year’s resolutions every year?

The start of a new year or even a new month is a great time to take up new habits and attitudes, and leave behind those things that do not serve us. But there is so much pressure surrounding New Year’s that I think we should all take a break from “resolutions”.

It’s not the decision to do something healthy that is just for us that causes most resolutions to be broken almost as quickly as they’ve been made. No, we break New Year’s resolutions because we make such a big deal out of them. We are bombarded by the idea that a successful or big resolution equates to a successful year.

Do we really need to place that kind of pressure on ourselves?

I’ve never actively made a New Year’s resolution, but I recommend everyone take this year off. No one needs the stress that comes from setting yourself up for failure. If you want to make a resolution, resolve to appreciate your family/friends, your home, your pets. Resolve to take a deep breath. Resolve to forgive yourself for not accomplishing as much as you want. Resolve to have patience. Resolve to apologize when you go stir crazy and take it out on your partner.

It’s the first week of January, and maybe it doesn’t feel as promising as usual. So if you want to make a resolution to do yoga every day, go for it! Just realize that if you skip a day, you’re not breaking any rules or resolutions. There is no failure if something doesn’t stick. You are doing the best you can, and really, do you need more of a resolution that that?