According to an article by Inc, 80% of people fail to achieve their New Year’s resolutions. As someone who has created many New Year’s resolutions at the start of every year, I have also failed to complete them. The main reasons why I fail to achieve my goals are because I’ve created many unachievable resolutions or given myself too short of a time limit for my change.

Resolution lists might work for some, but they are ineffective for those who don’t have the proper resources to achieve what they’ve listed. Sometimes, many resolution lists are about a change in appearance, which in itself is unhealthy. These lists only truly work for adults who have the resources needed to achieve their resolutions. But teens are more likely to have less control over their lives, since they’re still growing and developing as a person, and still figuring out who they want to be.

For change to happen, one has to be fully committed and their actions have to be consistent. Most of the time, people make New Year’s resolutions because they feel obligated to do so. They feel the need to hop onto the trend, and when they do, they aren’t committed to the change. 

Another thing that makes New Year’s resolutions unachievable is the unpredictability of life. Many changes can happen within a year, so New Year’s resolutions could easily get backtracked by the events that occur in life later on. When one can’t plan accordingly for their entire year, they might start to lose motivation.

New Year’s resolutions can be hard to achieve because standards are placed too high. Many people hold themselves to an extremely high standard when it comes to change, and when they fail to meet those standards, they lose all hope. After they lose hope, they stop trying to complete their resolution. This then creates an ongoing cycle of never achieving the change they’d like to see in themselves and feeling helpless.

Even though New Year’s resolutions can be unrealistic, I have still made some plans to become a better person in 2023. I created some ideas for a better me and tried my best to make them achievable. Most of them are related to my mental health, while others are goals and habits that would be beneficial for me in the long run. My method to achieve them is tracking my progress and reminding myself of why I am doing this. If I give myself low- commitment, flexible and reasonable standards, I’ll most likely be able to achieve all of my resolutions. 

Whether you are planning on creating resolutions for the upcoming year or not, I recommend creating changes and goals for yourself. Whether these goals are short-term or long-term, becoming a better version of yourself will benefit you forever.