New Year, Same You

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Exploration of new paths// Creating a list of aspirations is a New Year’s staple, but should it be? The idea of waiting for a momentous time for one to make a change is beyond absurd and for that New Year’s resolutions bring more harm than good. (Photo courtesy of iStock images)

by Jordyn Tribus 

For some, New Year’s provides the chance for transformation – to create a “new-and-improved” version of ourselves and our actions. When January 1st rolls around, these “resolutions” are established as a way of promising ourselves change. While the notion behind resolutions sounds good, they themselves are abused and misguided. 

Setting goals for oneself is a great way to stay motivated. They provide people with the guidance to accomplish a position they want to achieve. These goals can be major or minor depending on one’s ambition. However, the issue with this is the pressure. When creating a high or extreme goal, a primary feeling is stress or anxiety to reach that goal. Because this occurs, many people stop their own resolutions that they have established for themselves, consequently, leaving them disappointed. 

Resolutions are just empty promises made to portray a sense of fulfillment. Consistently, these commitments to oneself are based on insecurities – body, face, attitude, etc. When people see something they don’t like about themselves (because they don’t fit into the “standards” this society has created), they instantly think of change instead of embrace. While in some scenarios change reflects positivity, it can also inflict an increase in self-judgment.

Society has placed ideals of what a “beautiful” girl and boy look like. Blonde hair, blue eyes, skinny body, slim face, a sloped nose, stylish clothes… and the list continues on. Social media has only enhanced these values in a person. People lose belief in what makes them unique in order to fit the new trends online and reconfigure into somebody who is, by these standards, beautiful. However, it is not somebody’s appearance that characterizes them, it is their personality, their soul, their actions, and most importantly their heart. All of these things are what should be reflected on and “resolved” each year.

Acknowledgment of change is a supreme value that most people have difficulty with. Once this is recognized, the ability to change can set in sooner rather than later- leading to another concern of resolutions. Why does one have to wait until the new year to implement change? Waiting weeks or maybe even months to propose this modification defeats the purpose of the change because it will be too late. It is easier to fix something when it is first recognized than when it is lived with for a long time. New Year’s Resolutions create this bad habit of stalling instead of going out and doing. 

Next time you want to change something about yourself, please reflect on why you are making the change and then immediately act on it; do not fall victim to the resolutions of the new year.