In 2019, the best resolution is to stay the same

As we wave goodbye to the second week of 2019, other parts of our life also bid us farewell. The excitement of the holiday season finally fades, we start to get into the meaty part of classes and New Year’s resolutions drop off the radar.

If you already failed to follow through on your New Year’s resolutions, don’t fret. Resolutions are pointless and rarely bring about any meaningful changes. I appreciate the concept of reflection because it’s important to look back on the last year and recognize the moments or choices you want to learn from. Acknowledging the things you want to change, however, doesn’t mean you can instantly fix them. We are only human. If I could just make every aspect of my life perfect in the blink of an eye, I would have perfected everything years ago.

I see people putting this unnecessary and irrational pressure on themselves to accomplish these unattainable goals at the start of each year. Think about it: Everyone hates when a professor creates a million assignments that are all due on the same day. So why would you do that to yourself by creating New Year’s resolutions? You’re setting yourself up for failure or at least for a heaping amount of undue stress.

People preach “new year, new you” and flaunt their New Year’s resolutions at the start of every January. In fact, my next door neighbors even wrote the saying on their front door. I propose a different approach to tackling 2019: “New year, same you.”

I know, I know. This is the part where you’re like, “OK, that makes no sense.” But hear me out. Over winter break, I finally found time to evaluate 2018 and I learned a really valuable lesson about self-growth. The last couple of years were pretty rough for me. I experienced loss, heartbreak, rejection and hurt. At the end of December, I realized these events forced me into a “survival” mode of sorts, in which I lived with dismal dreams and a bleak outlook on life.

The thing is, I see people sink into this slump every day. Life becomes habitual, not purposeful. It’s easy to get bogged down by school, work and the routine of daily life. Fighting for your ambitions or just to get a C in chemistry becomes so laborious that people toss aside passions and beeline to the mindless entertainment of Netflix or Midtown.

I love Netflix just as much as the next person, but there are so many pursuits I enjoy more. That “new year, same you” status and a wholesome life require dedicating yourself to your passions and interests outside of work and school. That commitment means branching out and testing new pastimes, but it also signifies pursuing hobbies you already know and love.

I don’t have any resolutions for 2019 because I know by the second week of January they’ll be forgotten or long gone. Instead of developing new interests, I choose to focus on including my favorite recreations in my daily life. This provides an opportunity to expand without totally reinventing myself. It offers time for trying new things through the course of the whole year, for actually experiencing new things, rather than burning through a bunch of changes in a few days.

“New year, same you” allows for change and growth, but it doesn’t pressure you into becoming a “new you.” Instead of attempting (and likely failing) to rebrand the instant calendar page flips, maybe just test out being yourself a second year around. After all, practice makes perfect.

Chasity Maynard is a UF journalism freshman. Her column appears on Fridays.