New Years Resolutions and their Alternatives

We’re one week into 2019 and all the resolutions that come with it.  Hopefully yours are still in tact.  According to studies of Americans who ‘resolve’ each year, about 22% of resolutions fail after about a week.  While I have a long list of resolutions and goals to achieve throughout the 2019, January’s main focus is Sweaty January. 

Sweaty January is a yearly fitness frenzy practiced by our growing group of 15-20.  Our goal is simple:  40 hours of fitness to be completed in the month of January.  It’s a challenge to make time for 1-2 hours of workout each day (especially during a rainy January) but in the end, its always worth the effort.  Resolutions with friends are more enjoyable than those undertaken solo, unless you’re also doing Sober January, which is painful all around.

That being said, resolutions aren’t for everyone.  In fact, you just have to Google ‘new year’s resolutions’ to find very compelling arguments why they’re a terrible idea.  People like Melinda Gates opt instead for a ‘word of the year’, as she reveals in a recent interview for Inc. "I didn't set a new year's resolution this year. Or last year, either. I haven't for a while now.  I do believe in starting the new year with new resolve, but instead of adopting a resolution, I choose a word of the year--a word that encapsulates my aspirations for the twelve months ahead."

Mark Zuckerberg opts for creating a ‘yearly challenge’ for himself.  One year his challenge was to learn Mandarin, another year he went meatless (except for what he killed).

Google says A New Year’s resolution is simply a tradition, most common in the Western Hemisphere but also found in the Eastern Hemisphere, in which a person resolves to change an undesired trait or behavior, to accomplish a personal goal or otherwise improve their life.

At the end of the day, the spirit of a resolution is to evolve, become better and strive for more. And who says you have to start your resolution in January or on the first?  Maybe today is the start of a new focus or habit.  Improving one’s life and self is a good idea any time of the year.  Now get to it.