New Year's Resolutions: A little bit of history, and some "do"s and "don't"s

New Year's Resolutions are one of those things that are like my attempts at working out: priority one for about three days, and then rehearsals/doughnuts/Netflix gets in the way, and life resumes its normalcy.  Do I think they're antiquated and useless?  Surprisingly, no, or else why would I dedicate my time writing about them.  However, I do believe there is a right way, and thus, a wrong way to go about setting resolutions for the New Year.

First let's talk about the idea of resolutions in the first place.  When researching this definition, I found this to be the most apropos form:

a resolve; a decision or determination: to make a firm resolution to do something.  i.e. Her resolution to clear her parents' name allowed her no other focus inline.

Not to get all philosophical here, but many people develop the attitude, "Why change? I am who I am and that's all that I yam." Maybe that's just Popeye, but there are many that denounce the resolution tradition for their own reasons I suppose, but if it is indeed for the aforementioned reason, I have to ask myself, "Why?" Considering that in other parts of the world traditions range from rice pudding with a hidden almond, to bolting down a dozen grapes to your floor, this particular tradition doesn't seem that outlandish to me. Plus, with other global traditions like making cakes in the shape of rings, and eating pork to symbolize prosperity and success, I have to deduce that this custom is one that provides a little more depth and a little less superstition.

But getting back to the resolutions, where did they come from?  And why?  From what I can tell, the

beginnings of New Year's Resolutions came in the year 62 BC in Rome, as the month January was named after the god Janus, whose two-headed depiction looks one way into the past of the old year, and another into the future of the new.  Tres deep.  Anyway, as Christianity was adopted in the fourth century, the Pagan god Janus took a back seat and the new tradition of the Feast of the Circumcision replaced resolutions.

Ummm, what?  I can just imagine what shape those cakes might have been in…

Regardless, 17th and 18th century Puritans ended up adopting resolutions again as a combination of the resolves of Jonathan Edwards, and I have to assume the weirdness of the Circumcision Party.

Janus

So there's your history lesson, folks…but what now?  Why make these silly little challenges that we know won't last, thereby setting ourselves up for inevitable failure?  Well, to answer this question requires a bit of soul searching on your behalf, mixed with the intent to help make the world, or at least just yourself, a little bit better.  Which brings me to my next point: how should one go about setting a proper resolution that has at least the glimmer of hope of being successful?  Don't worry, I got chu.

Seven Tips for Setting- and ACHIEVING- your 

New Year's Resolutions

1. Start small.  No one ever got to the final boss level in Super Mario from level one, so don't attempt to do this with your resolution.  Is it possible to work out for an hour EVERY DAY for a whole year, after not ever having done so?  Of course, but it sure as hell ain't very likely.  Try for maybe an hour a week of maybe just vigorous cardio, to prevent the curse of "I've already failed my goal for the last six days so I might as well just give up" from happening on January 10th.
2. Don't go overboard.  You do not need a 100% makeover, so let's not get carried away with setting too many resolutions.  Take one, maybe two things and focus on those instead of trying to pull yourself in eight different directions at once. 
3. The effort is worth more than the end result.  No one ever reached personal success by setting a resolution that they met, but was totally bogus and not worth their time.  In order to reach personal satisfaction, resolutions like: "Get my nails done once a month" or "Not eating for a week to save up for those killer Louboutin boots" should be avoided.  It is likely you will meet your goal, but setting a resolution to promote self-growth and working toward it, despite failing, will prove to help you more than setting a shallow, self-serving goal and attaining it.
4. Schedule.  Setting a resolution is great, you've accomplished step one!  Lack of action, however, likely stems from not setting aside time to meet your goal.  Whether it's to join a fitness class once a month, or to limit your amount of Facebook stalking, you have to be conscious of making time- or substituting time, in order to attain success.  Take out your calendar and block out some days to spend on working on your goals, or find a worthwhile hobby and spend your old Facebook time crocheting yoga mat bags and fluffy wrist bands.  Regardless of your goals, they won't be met if you don't manage your time to fit them in.
5. Slip-ups are not synonymous with failure.  So you cheated and ate the entire box of Butterfingers in two days.  At least we had a good run, Crossfit diet…  As soon as you associate a caving of willpower to absolute failure, you have failed.  Success isn't easy, so get back on that cycle machine, and start over.  Don't give in to defeat so easily, and you will find your journey to success to actually reach its destination, albeit with some interesting detours.
6. Give yourself enough room to struggle.  Especially if your resolution pertains to fitness or dieting, you know you are likely to give in to temptation every one in awhile, so allow for it!  As soon as you stop depriving yourself constantly, with a conscious decision, you can accept the fact that you can attain your goal more easily.  You don't need to diet 100% of every hour of every day to see results, 90-95% of the time should be adequate.  This doesn't mean to gorge on chocolate and muffins and Doritos eight days out of the month, but a lot of fitness buff friends I have grant themselves a "cheat day" where they can have one meal they wouldn't ordinarily have during their diet.  This gives you something to look forward to, while consciously maintaining routine and eliminating the need for a temptation binge.
7. Collaborate.  Difficult and timely resolutions like working out, dieting, and developing a routine of chores are much more easily done when working with others.  Set a joint resolution with your significant other, or get a group of people to go to the gym with you.  It's much easier to bail on yourself and succumb to the latest episode of Game of Thrones than it is to bail on your friends that are expecting you, so use that as motivation.

So there you have it, friends!  I hope you are able to take something away from this rambling mess, and hopefully actually set a resolution that is worthwhile and attainable.  Have a fantastic New Year, stay safe, and I shall see you all in 2015!

New Year's History