Resolving Resolutions

Posted on August 12, 2019

It’s January again and everyone I know is talking about resolutions and wanting to make changes. This can be incredibly helpful for me, however I need to be really careful to focus on positive goals and things that I want to change. Why do I need to be careful? Because there is a little voice inside of me that says I should be more like everyone else and stick out less. How can I accept the fact that some people may not approve of me as I am? That’s a question I’m still trying to answer every day. It’s hard for me to be subtly out of sync with everyone else. However, I think diversity is important and necessary for the world we live in.

Ideally this time should be for self reflection so I can make the best resolutions for myself about what things that I want and need to change for the upcoming year. There are some  questions I should ask myself before committing to any resolutions each year. Am I making this resolution for myself or someone else? Is this important to me and do I really want to focus on it? Am I willing to give it the time and energy to change this? Can I break this resolution into small doable steps? Do I need help to achieve this resolution? And if so, do I have somebody willing to help me? And of utmost importance, can I actually change this or is this an exercise in frustration?

Not every resolution that I want to do is possible so figuring out which resolutions work for me is really important. A silly unrealistic resolution I’d really like to do is to fly like Superman through the air in real life. This resolution will not work because no matter how hard I work or try, I’m not gonna fly. I know this example is a little extreme, and a silly goal, so here are two resolutions for me. I want to stay in better contact and be closer to my friends and family this year. This is important to me and I think it is something that I can do with help. My second resolution is to be healthier, both physically and mentally. This is very important to me but boy, I’m going to need a lot of help. I will need to have people encourage me and hold me accountable for taking better care of myself. I am choosing these goals because they are important to me and they are something that I can change. There are a lot of things that I’m not planning to change this year. For me, choosing what to keep the same is part of good self care. Everybody has to choose what works best for them.

I am only going to make a few resolutions this year so that I can focus and be successful in making changes in my life. For me, the attempt at making changes is more important than whether I am successful or not. The important thing is to try to the best of your abilities. Wishing you the best of luck this new year.