Resolutions & Traditions

Today’s blog was written by Julia Rochester

Among Americans, the most common New Year's Resolutions have to do with health (eating better, going to the gym, self-care) or loved ones (spending more time with family, finding one's soulmate, etc.). But is it actually worth it to make a New Year's Resolution?

My family started a tradition a decade ago where, instead of making a New Year's Resolution, we'd select a word we'd strive to focus on for the year. That word was our “name” for the year. Last year, my word was TRUST.  For 2020, my dad’s word was PURPOSE (which serendipitously is the name of our puppy who joined the family that year). Now I know what you're thinking…my family didn't come up with this concept of condensing our New Year’s Resolution to one word. You could be right; however, we like to think we started the trend (or at least made it cool).

This tradition has evolved into my mom purchasing each family member a mug with the word and the year on it. That way we had no excuse to "forget" or "lose focus." This might sound silly, but this has surprisingly made it easier for me to commit to my New Year's Resolution. I'm sure there are plenty of official scientific studies conducted on the best way to stay true to one's resolution. I'm no expert, but what I do know is that in order for a New Year's Resolution to stick around for all of 2022 you have to make sure it's a SMART goal, that you state the resolution out loud, that you tell someone you trust to hold you accountable and, most importantly, put it on a mug you'll use every day.

Happy New Year!

-Julia Rochester