New Year's Resolutions

Here it is, the first post of 2012.  Many people have spent the last few weeks or so deeply contemplating what their New Year's Resolutions were going to be, and one thing in particular that keeps popping up in my Facebook News Feed is this: 20 New Year's Resolutions for 20-Somethings. It was an interesting read, and had plenty of good ideas for areas of improvement in 2012.

However, I must confess that I don't buy into the whole New Year's Resolution thing. I've been alive for 24 New Year's, but I can't ever remember once making a Resolution. I'll be honest; I don't see the point. I don't see why one day of the year is so special that that's the day everyone decides to make improvements in their lives. If I feel that I need to lose weight, or start exercising more (typically I don't and am in good shape), I can start that any day I want. I refuse to be one of the masses that gets a gym membership starting in January (for this example), but by March hasn't been to the gym in weeks.

 I've also seen a bunch of previews for a new movie out called New Year's Eve, and a recurring theme is how special/magical New Year's Eve is. The truth is, it's not any different than any other day of the year. The only thing that makes it magical is the attitude people have going into it--they expect it to be magical, so they make it magical. Any day can be that special with the right attitude. Treat every day this year as if it is something that is as hyped up as New Year's Eve, and every day will be special. Today's the day that you could make an effort to stop smoking; today's the day that you could meet the person you're going to marry; today's the day that could drastically change the way the rest of your life is lived. Stop waiting around, and start making it happen.

I'm not trying to bash New Year's Resolutions, I just feel that any day can be a turning point, and people should approach each day as such. To quote the old cliche, "today's the first day of the rest of your life."

For those of you who do make New Year's Resolutions, I do hope you stick with them; and for those of you that do, I think that's great.