Great Oak Gazette

Genesis Abrams’29

Staff Writer

After taking another trip around the sun, you have likely constructed a New Year’s resolution, hoping for a miraculous change in your habits. Instead of embarking on a meaningful journey of self-improvement, you set yourself up for failure. Vague goals, excessive external pressure, and a lack of a tangible plan kill any chance of genuine progress. In reality, making a wish upon a star takes less effort—and is about equally fruitful. This year, take matters into your own hands and craft a resolution with resolve: a gameplan for your 2026 that builds towards success.

Last year, common New Year’s resolutions included “saving more money, being happy, exercising more, improving physical health, and eating healthier” (Girolimon 2025). These aspirations often fall flat once you attempt to implement them into your daily life. Reshaping habits is vastly different from simply declaring them—one requires active effort, while the other takes 15 minutes to announce and rarely comes to fruition. After the initial euphoria of deciding to change, “many people don’t think beyond the early stages of their resolutions, according to Lesniak” (Girolimon 2025). Underplanning your New Year’s resolutions sets your journey off on the wrong foot, leaving you without a clear guide toward success.

On the other end of the spectrum, some people tend to overshoot their dreams for the new year. Dramatic changes can be counterproductive: “Psychologically, the brain finds it hard to focus on multiple changes simultaneously, leading to burnout” (Frank 2025). Burning the candle at both ends may help you start strong, but you’ll eventually lose steam after expending all of your energy. Dialing down intensity can help your goals become more achievable: “If, for example, your aim is to exercise more frequently, schedule three or four days a week at the gym instead of seven” (APA 2023). Putting yourself through strenuous tasks for half the year only to regress out of exhaustion for the other half in a net success rate of zero. Changing piece by piece—though slower—lays a realistic foundation for lasting growth.

Psychologists debate the benefits of introducing social support into personal goals. Dr. Stenhoff from ASU claims, “Maybe we have a ‘cheater’ day, or maybe we are getting feedback from the people with whom we interact” (Ewing 2018). Sharing your goals can be a double-edged sword—it may motivate you further or hold you back. Relying on others to catch your slips and lift you up introduces risk; a few weak links could doom your goals to failure. Even when not directly involved, “this social pressure can sometimes lead people to set goals they don’t truly care about or that don’t align with their values” (Frank 2025). Without a genuine reason for change, refraining from setting aimless goals can actually benefit your mental health.

Positive reinforcement, however, can also come from a strong support network. Close connections often have the most encouraging advice to offer: “You can use a friend, family member, trainer, counselor, or anyone else you choose as your accountability partner” (Girolimon 2025). Having an external cheerleader can help you stay motivated and boost your chances of success. When joining others who share your goals, it’s crucial to discern whether their presence supports or distracts from your progress. Help is valuable—but only if it truly helps.

Even with the best intentions, many people give up on their goals too soon. Failure rates continue to rise as negativity surrounds New Year’s resolutions: “And that’s kind of the problem—it’s common knowledge that resolutions mostly don’t pan out” (Cox 2024). Knowing the odds are against you can make it easier to join the ever-growing league of quitters, where company is plentiful. Goals come in many forms and levels of difficulty, but “the one thing that generally dooms resolutions to failure is an all-or-nothing attitude” (Cox 2024). Hinging your resolution’s success on perfection is an unsustainable and damaging approach. Planning around a single measure of success turns your goals from a growth experience into psychological warfare.

Amid the stress surrounding the new year, many people now choose to start their resolutions later. Waiting too long, however, works against you: “Even for the most committed individuals, there can be a wane of enthusiasm the longer something is put off” (Girolimon 2025). Using the new year as a symbolic fresh start can be motivating if you thrive on that sense of renewal—but real change can happen anytime. Postponing your desire to grow until a specific date only increases doubt. If you do prefer a set time, consider April: “Unlike January, where the energy of the new year often encourages impulsive or unrealistic goal-setting, April allows for a more thoughtful, strategic approach to goal creation” (Frank 2025). Giving yourself some breathing room from the hype of New Year’s Day allows your resolutions to be more grounded, deliberate, and achievable.

In conclusion, hasty dreams made at 11:59 p.m. on December 31st are not true resolutions. Goals crafted specifically for you—with realistic expectations and the right support—are resolutions with resolve. External pressure to change every aspect of your life is unrealistic and unsustainable; one small, meaningful step toward a better you is enough. Growth isn’t confined to January—starting in April or at any spontaneous moment throughout the year can help you avoid social pressure and stay consistent. Wherever your goals lead you, remember to make your resolutions with resolve.