Why Do We Make New Year’s Resolutions?

The clock is ticking; just a few final seconds left before a fresh new year welcomes you with its arms open wide.

Happy New Year wishes card
Happy new year card.

‘Tis the season of joy, as they like to call it. With Christmas spirits barely out of the mind, we turn our heads eagerly towards the clock. Time for another countdown! In just a few days’ time, a brand new year will be here, and with it- some fresh hope and a fresh start for many.

While we gear up for the New Year’s bash, there is one thing that inevitably tags along- the list of New Year’s resolutions. Be it the resolve of waking up every day at 5 AM for a jog, or something as simple as trying to eat fewer doughnuts, everybody has something in mind. However, there is yet another school of thought- one that believes the idea to make resolutions is a little outdated.

Let’s delve a little further into the tradition and see for ourselves.

Making New Year’s resolutions

Well, common belief holds that new year’s resolutions go as far back as 4,000 years ago! The ancient Babylonians used to make promises to the gods, of returning any borrowed debts or objects. It is from there that the current practice has evolved, going through the passage of time.

In today’s time, New Year stands as a convenient sign of new beginnings. When we turn to a new page on the calendar, we believe we can do so in our lives as well. To add to that, we have the evergreen “New year, New me” motto. However let down the past year has made us feel, we believe we can make the upcoming year better, and start afresh.

What better way to start afresh than with resolutions? Promising that as soon as the clock strikes midnight, you will not go back to the old ways, instead will start living life “the right way”.

A second glance

One thing is established now: we get why the idea of a New Year’s resolution is so peppy to many. It has all the essential “looking good” factors associated, and hardly any reason not to do it, right? Technically, no, but as we mentioned before, there exists an alternative school of thought. The question arises: is a New Year’s resolution really serving any purpose, or just giving us a false sense of direction?

Here’s how it goes: if we were so keen on implementing a good habit into our lives, would we really wait for the end of an year to do it? Seems far-fetched. Also, try and see if you can remember the last time you successfully managed to keep a new year’s resolve, all the way through the 365 days?

To be honest, the early morning jogs go on for an enthusiastic couple of days, maybe a month if one is determined, but beyond that, the chances get slimmer. At least for a lot of us. So, yes, it needs a “resolution” of its own to keep the New Year’s resolution live and pumping. Does that mean we should stop making them altogether since there is seemingly no purpose to them? Maybe yes, maybe no. After all, every individual is different. For some, not being able to keep a resolution means it is of no use. For others, it works as a booster from one year to the next, even if it means making and breaking the same old set of resolutions again and again.

So, there are no hard and fast rules in the end. What works for you, might not work for somebody else altogether. Resolution or not, a new year does give us a chance to start with a clean slate, figuratively speaking. So, why not make the most out of it? Head into this new year with a sense of glee, who knows, maybe a spin of the calendar is all you ever needed.

Do you have made new year’s resolutions? If yes, what are they? Let us know in the comments below. And, of course, have a happy new year!