Wishes and resolutions
25 January 2016
While we’re almost at the end of January, it’s still the start of the year, and still holiday season, so I thought I’d write about making New Years resolutions.
For some reason, at the end of our cycle around the sun; the twelve month lunar cycle we call a year, and at the beginning of the new cycle, we invariably set aside time to reflect on the previous year and all the things which have happened—both good and bad. We usually reminisce about the highlights of the year, and commiserate on the downs.
We also look ahead and, most of us at least, make wishes and promises or resolutions about what we would like to do in the coming twelve months; about some of the things we wish for and also what we promise to do for ourselves. For a short period of time, all of the positiveness we believe can bring to our lives abounds and we are full of good intentions for the next twelve months.
Yet, once the rhythm of the year, our work patterns and routines become settled again, more often than not we invariably forget about our good intentions and plans to revitalise ourselves and our lives; we lose sight of what is needed to make positive changes to the way we live and, most of all, to help us get out of the proverbial rut!
Not that it is easy to make changes, we all know that.
Yet, I always believe if you are determined enough it’s possible to succeed at almost anything you turn your mind to. It’s simply a question of being realistic and pragmatic—setting attainable wishes and goals, and then working out how best to comply with them!
It seems to me that the things people wish for or are concerned about the most can be easily categorised into three clear, key areas:
• Health—namely many people wish to be able to give up smoking or drinking alcohol, or promise themselves that they will go to the gym or do some exercise every day to lose some weight or just generally be healthier in themselves.
• Financial well-being—who wouldn’t like to have or earn more money and be more financially more comfortable? But, unless you win the lottery or gain some other unexpected windfall, then this wish often falls by the wayside—to make changes in this aspect of one’s life usually needs dedication, focus and, not surprisingly, hard work!
• Relationships—the number of people who I meet who are in unhappy relationships never ceases to amaze me; yet actually doing something about making the necessary changes is, sometimes, too much for them to contemplate, too much of a challenge. In short, the will to change just has to be there. Conversely, I meet so many people who are not in relationships, yet who long to be, and promise themselves that the next twelve months will be the time that they rectify this situation.
Yes, we all probably start the next twelve months (as we do every year) with good intentions. But make sure your wishes and resolutions are realistic and can be achieved—you’ll be all the better for it. And once you’ve decided something you want to do – stick to it. You can do it!
