The Myth of New Year's Resolutions
- 12 hours ago
- 3 min read
By Ainsley Benbow
I don’t think New Year’s Resolutions should be a thing.
I’m sorry…not really.
I know, I know, that every year it is so fun to make a list of things to change in the following year. Goals, lifestyle, health, the whole thing, but what impact does that actually have? Waiting up all night for that special time right when the fireworks go off…. BAM!!! “New Year, New Me” mentality, right?
It is the same cycle every year, but how long does it actually last? Have you ever thought to yourself, why didn’t I make this change earlier?
I first came across this thought last year when I was making my own list of New Year’s resolutions: work out more, drink more water, don’t procrastinate, you know, the simple stuff. But then I thought, why didn’t I just start this a week ago, or a month ago, even last year? Why did I wait until now to supposedly ‘change my life’ for the better when I could’ve changed my life any day of the year or any of the 17 years of my life?
I’ve thought about it, but never made the change.
So why do people procrastinate positive change in their own lives, waiting till New Year’s to make unrealistic goals that most of the time never occur? Why waste time and not just start now?
A study in Poland discovered that “almost 30% of people never make New Year’s resolutions because they know they will not be able to keep it”. This was like me at 15 years old, and I decided it was finally time to do the 75-day hard with 3 of my friends – we collectively didn’t make it past day 2.
Research shows that by the second week of February, approximately 80% of New Year’s resolutions fail.
This is because people start their new year with high expectations and confidence, a boost in endorphins, and ideas that are built on a system destined to fail. If people, rather than choosing the hardest things to complete, complete smaller, more realistic goals, it would work better. For example, working out more, big no-no. Go for x2 30min walk every week, it's a bit more reasonable. Set yourself mini goals to work up to those big goals.
According to Forbes magazine, the top 3 reasons why people fail at completing their New Year’s resolutions are:
“It’s your consciousness that needs to change before your behaviour can change.”
“You don’t have an accountability structure to help you sustain change.”
“You are actually scared of, and completely resistant to, achieving this big goal, and you won’t let yourse.lf”
Through these suggestions, people can start changing the root problem of New Year’s resolutions – timing and mindset. It isn’t motivation that people struggle with, but the fact that change doesn’t suddenly miraculously happen! Change is brought through discipline and hard work, not when the fireworks get set off at midnight like a magical reset button.
And even if New Year’s resolutions did work perfectly, why do we feel like we have to wait?
The tradition itself goes back thousands of years to ancient civilisations that made promises to their gods at the start of every year, hoping for a better future and good fortune. Back then, it was about reflection and intention, while now, in our modernised 21st century society, it sometimes feels more like pressure — pressure to reinvent yourself overnight instead of slowly growing into who you want to be.
Someone once said, “What you’re not changing, you’re choosing.” That idea stuck with me because it shifts the focus away from a single date and back onto everyday decisions. Every day is technically a “new year” in miniature — a new chance to do something differently.
It’s not that New Year’s resolutions are bad. Sure, they can be exciting, hopeful, and even motivating for a little while; however, real change doesn’t come from writing a list at 11:59 pm and hoping for the best. It comes from small actions repeated over and over.
I’m not saying to completely ditch the whole pop-culture obsession with New Year’s resolutions. Honestly, I’ll probably still make mine every year — again and again. But maybe instead of treating them like a dramatic before-and-after transformation, we should see them as gentle reminders of where we want to go.
In truth, this countdown to fireworks, a new year, new goal,s and supposedly ‘new self’ doesn’t make you a different version of yourself.
Because, why make a start tomorrow when you can make a start today?
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