As human beings, we all share one common goal: to find happiness. While trying to achieve this goal, many people set unrealistic expectations for themselves, more accurately referred to as resolutions for the New Year.

As one year creeps stealthily out the door, a new year replaces it. Each passing year takes with it the failed attempts at pursuing that same common goal: to be nicer, develop a better relationship with someone you’ve pushed away, lose ten pounds, work harder, get good grades and, most importantly, to remain happy through it all.

However, we get so caught up in trying to be something we’re not, we forget who we are and all of the good things we have accomplished. Sure, New Year’s resolutions are good for the first couple of weeks, but just like the new Christmas present you received, the excitement wears off after a while and you eventually return to your old ways.

We make many New Year’s resolutions, but don’t always follow through with them. Every day we are pressed with new temptations that distract us from our main goal. It’s hard to get out of bad habits. In order to make something routine, you have to do that thing over and over again until it sticks in your brain. Some of us do not have the time, nor patience, to make our goals routine.

We continue to make New Year’s resolutions year after year, even when we do not successfully complete our last resolution. For a couple of weeks everything seems to be looking up, but then we get bored and fall back into old habits.

So this year, instead of making promises to yourself that you can’t keep, work harder to recognize the things that are already going well in your life and set more reasonable goals that can be attained through a plan that is not completely unrealistic.

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