How are your new year’s resolutions going? In this article I will be exploring if new year resolutions are helpful and how they may not just be for January!
2026 is only eight days old and some of us may have already ‘failed’ by not keeping up with a resolution for the new year. Undoubtedly, there can be an overemphasis on resolutions and the ‘new year, new me’ idea can lead to feelings of failure when we can’t meet those expectations immediately – and that is not a good way to start the year.
Look, it’s January, it’s cold and most people have a long wait until pay day. This may not be the best time to make changes. The idea of new year resolutions can make us feel pressured and bad about ourselves, but this doesn’t mean that new year’s resolutions are inherently bad. It’s about changing how we approach them.
Anything that reminds us to reflect is a positive and the year changing is a good prompt but certainly not the only time of year for self-reflection. Whether it’s a new year, flower buds opening in Spring, birthdays, anniversaries, the leaves falling in Autumn, there are plenty of times during the year that can make us think about where we are in our lives and where we want to be.
These occasions shouldn’t be about pressure to be something new but instead space to look inwards and get in touch with what we want and what we need, to decide if we want to make any changes and how we might go about that change.
The key to making meaningful and reflective resolutions is to be realistic and to build in space for things to go wrong. When I say realistic, I don’t mean easy! There is no point setting a goal that will be impossible for you to complete, that leads to giving up. Think about what is realistic for you to do and what will be manageable in the long term. We want to support our mental health with the resolution, not cause stress and worry. Similarly, instead of saying you will do yoga every day it may be better to say you will aim to do yoga every day and at least four days a week. Build in space for when life may get in the way.
So, if it feels right for you, take this cold and icy January as a chance for introspection but also know that there will be other chances for that during the year if all you want to do is hibernate right now!
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