It’s the end of December. The New Year is coming, and it’s a big one. The New Year can be seen as a time for improvement and growth, and can be mistaken as a time for new beginnings.
Because it is the end of another decade, there is pressure to plan the next year — no, the next decade — to every last detail.
Power to whoever wants to take advantage of this mindset and set goals and improvements for next year. But there is just one thing you should keep in mind. January is a horrible time to set goals.
We are all familiar with the failed New Year’s resolution. We start strong, whether it be changing exercise habits, journaling or learning new skills. The first two weeks are easy, then we start to barter our time.
We say to ourselves, “I will do it tomorrow, just not today.”
Three months later, we look back on our failed resolutions and scoff at how much of a failure each one was.
Winter is a horrible time to make resolutions and threatens ultimatums to our bad habits. There is no worse time to start resolutions than January.
By the time it is January, we are stuck in our winter funk and are in no hurry to get out of it. January is in the middle of winter and we are in no mindset to get out of our comfort zone during the season.
In the article “Why you shouldn’t start a New Year’s resolution on January 1, ” Amy Morin said an issue people have with unmet resolutions is a lack of will power. There is a lot of energy that goes into figuring out what to change, but no push for action.
Morin also said if your habits are not ready to shift, then it is hard to succeed in changing them. Change isn’t something that is forced — a hard pill for most people to swallow.
Rather than making resolutions in the winter, try spring. Spring is known to be a more productive season. Spring cleaning is an overused phrase for a reason.
We are more likely to stick to something if we have the motivation, especially if the change means something to us.
2020 is a big year and some might think it is odd to start a decade without a preplanned list of goals. We all are going to cave and make resolutions for this year during the winter.
However, when making resolutions, it is better to stick to the spring and add them when habits are ready to change, rather than in January.
All in all, it is smart to make your resolutions on April 1. If all else fails, April Fools’ Day is the day to blame.
Emily Pearce can be reached at [email protected]