This entry at the Freakonomics blog got me thinking, very late, about New Years resolutions.
I will be upfront and honest. I loathe New Years resolutions. They drive me bonkers. Here are several reasons for my unnatural distaste for these annual goals of hope:
- People (myself included) hardly ever keep them past February
- The fervor with which people adopt these resolutions seems to me akin to extreme Nationalism.
- “Have you made any resolutions?” The subtle, yet effective and most frequent means of reinforcement.
- “You don’t have a resolution?! You need to make one!” The peer pressure here is more detectable.
- “OK, everyone take your paper and right down at least one resolution.” Conform or face social repercussions!
- These resolutions are often rushed and insincere. I often make them up off the top of my head to avoid the
SpanishGoal Inquisition. - More often than not I use New Years as an excuse to put things off.
- I know I need to eat healthier, but it’s almost New Year so I’ll start then!
That all having been said, I don’t hate goals. I’m not very good at them, and know I should do better. Goals are very important. When I’m making and keeping goals I’m progressing in life. When I’m not it’s all to easy to flounder.
So here’s my Non-New Years Resolution: I will take my time to decide on important goals for this coming year. I will not overburden myself with huge monumental aspirations, but simple, practical, and achievable goals.
With this in mind, I’m asking for the help of my friends, not because I want badly to please you, but because I realize the value of an outside perspective. So, what do you think I should work on? Are there things which you feel would make me a better, happier, more effective person? Perhaps it might help if I give you some categories. Here’s another, marvelous, bulleted list:
- Work
- Education
- Family
- Religion
- Health
For extra credit, you can see last year’s resolutions here. Try and figure out if I kept any of them.
