Enjoying a New Year’s Resolution

Every January 1, countless people make resolutions to change the type of person they will be for the next calendar year. Favorites areas for improvement are health, education, and motivation. I will exercise at the gym every day. I will become vegan. I will read 100 novels by the end of the year. I will argue before the Supreme Court. All of these are very good, very productive, very intense goals. The funny thing is that these resolutions have one thing in common: they all kind of lack fun. Think about it, isn’t that why they are resolutions and not habits by now? So, while I certainly applaud lofty resolutions, here are a few that are less intensive and more fun.

• Learn how to cook a new go-to dish. You like dinner parties? Boom. Here’s a new resolution that will be fun and useful. Learn how to make a new standout, compliment-magnet dish. Something spectacular and sure to impress. It doesn’t have to be fancy, just impressive. Make that dish the dish that your friends know you for. Steve, yeah I know Steve, he makes the best chili. That’s you. You could be the Steve in your friend group. You don’t even need to show it off if you don’t feel like it; sometimes, you just need to treat yourself to something special. It’s fun to experiment with food.

 

• Make a resolution to say no once in a while. Sometimes, you have to get comfortable with knowing who you are and where your boundaries lie. There’s a great deal of pressure to say yes to everything. What your spouse wants, what your kids want, what your friends want, what your boss wants…etc. It is very hard to reject the people you care about. But learning to say no to the things that are not suited for you can save relationships. Overtaxing yourself adds to stress, and that stress can come out in destructive and negative ways. Saying no and being comfortable with it will establish that boundary and make you more reliable.

 

• Cut out the sugar. I will admit, I love soft drinks. Is Pepsi ok? Yeah. Yeah it is. At this point in my life, Coke vs. Pepsi doesn’t even matter to me. I just want it. But sugar is a killer. So here’s my resolution: no soft drinks—not even the diet versions—for the next year. Hopefully this becomes habit, and I won’t need it in the future ever again. (doubtful). This one is hard, and not as fun. But you know what is fun? Basketball, fitting in my pants, and not having to worry about diabetes.

 

Whatever it is that you choose for your resolutions, I think it is important to choose at least one that is easy, healthy, and fun. I don’t actually think anyone takes their resolutions that seriously. We all hear the jokes about how so and so lasted only one week, two days, hours…etc. So why not at least make one beneficial resolution that you can accomplish, at least just to say that you did this time next year.