This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at U Conn chapter.

About your New Year’s Resolutions…

As 2019 begins, more and more people are compelled to reflect on their time spent last year. We think about the things we didn’t get to do, people we didn’t see, trips we never took, promotions we didn’t get, habits we couldn’t kick. We take these reflections and refurbish them into fresh proclamations.

“I’m going to workout five days a week, every week.”

“From now on, it’s only one Netflix episode a day!”

“Tomorrow, I’m giving away all my belongings aside from 50 essential things. Minimalism, here I come.”

“Call me Hermione Granger because, this year, I’m getting all A’s.”

“This year, I’m going full on zero waste.”

“I’m going to read one new book every month.”

“New year, new me.”

Some of these might sound familiar. I’ll be the first to raise my hand and admit to making these statements myself! While it’s a wonderful thing to set goals for yourself, to push yourself to grow in all aspects of your life, our New Year’s resolutions often toe the line between aspiration and obsession.

Here’s a few tips for setting resolutions that are practical, achievable, and won’t make you feel like butts if you don’t meet your goal.

? How to Make Effective Resolutions ?

Remember, the aim is not 100% success, but growth. You don’t have to nail your resolution. Going to the gym one day more, meditating once a month, using your own coffee cup, making one more friend, calling loved ones more frequently, are all fantastic changes.
Which leads me to say, change is change. It doesn’t matter how much you’ve changed, but that you’ve changed at all. That’s what resolutions are about. That is what personal growth is all about.
Your goals are for you and should not be products of what you think you should do, but what you want to do. If you have no interest in changing your fitness routine, don’t. If you think your spending habits are fine, then power to you! If you don’t want to travel more, plant that lovely bum back on the couch. Your resolutions are for you. They are to improve the way your experience and live your life, so make resolutions that align with creating your dream life.
Be gentle with yourself. Remember that story about the tortoise and the hare? Well, you should make like the tortoise and take it slow. Know that you will mess up, that you will fall off the wagon, and understand that the only people who “stick” to their resolutions are those that recover and preservere despite these mistakes.
Finally, do not neglect all of your accomplishments and be sure to celebrate your victories. Too often, we focus on things we want, what we lack, where we are falling short. Recognizing how much progress we’ve made is a powerful tool in making yourself feel more empowered, and more motivated, than ever before! Know when to pat yourself on the back and grab a Starbucks, kid.

In short, New Year’s Resolutions are a mixed bag. They come from a well intentioned place of personal growth, but can easily lead to damaging cycles of fanatic behavior and brutal self-criticism. Be gentle with yourself, remind yourself of the above tips, and try to step away from the traditional New Year’s extremism. You don’t get brownie points for staying in crows pose two seconds longer that Stacy Showoff in hot yoga.

Remember, resolutions are tools to keep yourself in a cycle of growth. They are stepping stones towards your most fulfilling life and each step you take forward, no matter how small, is moving in the right direction.

Rethink Your Unrealistic Resolutions!