(ThyBlackMan.com) First of all, Happy New Year! Yes, it’s a new year and that means resolutions for the year. For those unfamiliar of this custom, when the new year approaches, folks tend to make plans or set goals for themselves that they want to manifest in the following year.
Now, congratulations to those who manage to meet their resolutions each year or even if you’ve finally done everything you wanted to do last year—but it’s a custom that many tend to forget, never get off the ground, or just can get it started.
New Year’s Resolutions Are Pretty Dicey
On first glance, it seems like a good thing to start the year on the right foot. You’ve set plans, you know what you want to do—go do it. Honestly, it’s pretty simple in theory but in execution it varies by person but many of us don’t achieve our resolutions.
One reason why is simply that the year is unpredictable. COVID struck and snuffed many people’s plans for the year—and the following year. Folks who were saying “I’m going to travel this year” found those plans hindered. Some went against guidelines and traveled anyway and in many cases, they traveled to COVID hot spots or locales that didn’t have the best precautions, were behind on updates, or had no precautions at all.
But hey, at least they can mark a resolution off the list.
The point is that each year that rolls up, we don’t know what will happen. We know what is supposed to happen—sports championship games, elections, new seasons of shows, endless war—those are constants. Earth and all nations are consistent in that regard. However, there’s always a curveball thrown in.
Consistency.
So, your resolution could be impacted by things beyond your control. The other thing to consider is that when you hear someone’s resolutions, it sounds like it just popped into that person’s head. Now, there’s no rule book for announcing your resolutions but it would be wiser to lay down the groundwork for your resolutions early in previous year.
A Multi-Part Resolution or a Rolling Resolution
For those having trouble getting into their resolutions, go for smaller, achievable goals. Don’t make plans to travel the world when you know that you have to work nonstop as if you have no off time for it. That’s a good way to end up at the end of the year wondering where all the weeks went and disappointed you didn’t do any of your goals.
Aim smaller and make those resolutions open-ended or flexible. Sure, you want to do it in that year but it’s possible if you don’t try to hit them consecutively. Even better for people who fail with resolutions is to take a big resolution, break it up into parts and focus on a part of or a few parts of that resolution.
You still have resolutions but they’re all part of a larger resolution—the one you wanted to mention to everyone—but you’re achieving it in installments. If you need it to be a challenge then just say you want to get it done in the next three or so years.
Many resolutions such as weight loss or better money management are something people tend to fail at or not give the best effort—so it makes the resolution list the following year. Depending on that person’s focus, restraint and effort, that resolution might do a three-peat.
So why not chop your resolution into multiple parts to be handled over three or four years anyway? Also, don’t feel pressured or obligated to share your resolutions because everyone else is doing it. Yeah, it’s a custom, it’s tradition but you don’t have to participate. You can put in your journal or your memory bank and tackle it as you wish.
The thing is not feel like you must achieve your resolutions or else you failed. Your schedule is what it is, giving yourself more work will never be it. The only time it doesn’t come off that way is if your resolution is simply improving upon something that is already in your schedule or routine. It’s something you’re already working on—you could say you have a rolling resolution.
How about you? In what ways have you tackled or achieved your annual resolutions? Do you simply not announce them? Let us know!
Staff Writer; James Swift, Jr.
Gaming since 1989 and headbanging since 1999, James enjoys comics, RPGs, wrestling, and all things old school and retro. Check out his writing here AfroGamers and The Black Rock and Heavy Metal. You can also find him on Twitter at; metalswift and soon on Kick where he will stream mobile titles.
One can also contact this brother at; JSwift@ThyBlackMan.com.