Every new year, people make the same resolutions, with typical goals such as losing weight, volunteering, getting a better job, eating healthier, traveling and being more eco-friendly. But this year it seems like the new trend is for people to neither make resolutions nor stick to one of the traditional “exercise more, eat less” resolutions.
Those who don’t make resolutions feel that they shouldn’t use the New Year as an excuse to make lifestyle changes.
“I make healthy-eating resolutions year after year — however, I really do struggle keeping up with them,” said Elon University freshman Katy Bellotte.
Bellotte plans to work on two resolutions this year: take better care of her skin and improve her vocabulary. Bellotte discusses her motivations in more detail on her YouTube channel, “HelloKaty.”
“When I got home from college three weeks ago, I decided to change my skincare regimen and just focus on keeping my skin bacteria-free and clean,” Bellotte said. “Also, I think having a very good vocabulary is key to succeeding in life, and I hope in 2015 I can learn more big words. I’m very excited about it. I think that if I learn one new word a day, it’ll help me in the long run.”
Resolutions are said to be opportunities to work on a new and improved self with the beginning of a new calendar year. They start with the best of intentions, but can be difficult to follow through on over the course of the year.
“This year, I intend to actually complete and follow through with my resolutions,” Bellotte said. “I’ve made half-hearted resolutions in the past, but this year I hope I’ll stick with them.”
Sophomore Hailey Fleishman hopes to use her resolution for 2015 as a way to get out of her comfort zone. She said being in college has made her branch out and try new things, something she wants to continue to embrace in the New Year. Her ultimate goal is to have a happier, healthier year than the last.
“For 2015, my New Year’s resolution is to venture out of my comfort zone, try new things and go to new places,” Fleishman said. “I plan to enact my resolution by writing down my goals for the year and making lists of the places and activities I want to do.”
Traveling more is a popular category for resolutions, which can influence specific goals of visiting new locations, learning new languages and investigating new cultures.
“I was inspired to make this resolution because I will soon be studying abroad and I want to take advantage of every opportunity I have now to travel to new places,” Fleishman said. “I want to explore more of North Carolina, hopefully get an internship in Atlanta, and I’m really hoping to study abroad next spring in Perth [Australia].”
To Fleishman, a New Year’s Resolution is a “commitment to oneself to find what will make life meaningful and striving to work towards that moving forward.”
Real Simple magazine found that only 8 percent of people actually keep their resolutions. The magazine explained how the top tweeted goals for 2014 were to be happy and to exercise more. They advised readers to put extra thought into resolutions to make goals more attainable.
“If you want to make a positive change in your life, you shouldn’t have to wait until Jan. 1 to begin living your life differently,” Bellotte said.