New Year, New You?

It’s quite a bold statement: “2015 won’t change a thing unless you do.” But there’s truth in it.

This is the time of year where people inevitably start posting this whole “new year new me” stuff. And hey, I’m all in favour of that. Sure, it might bug a few people, but actually, the turning of a new year has been a reason for people deciding to change for years and years (apparently it even spans back as far as the ancient Babylonians. Thanks, Wikipedia.) So if you’re looking for a reason to let go of something bad that’s happened to you, or for an excuse to leave self-harm behind, or even if you’re just looking for something to look forward to, then 2015 might just be it.
Most commonly, people want to improve their physical health (whether that’s quitting smoking/drinking, eating more healthily, or exercising more), improve their mental wellbeing (thinking more positively, stressing less, and generally enjoying life more), or improve themselves overall (by being more organised, independent, or brave). So actually, whether your resolution is that you’re going to take better care of yourself physically, mentally, and/or just in general, then go for it! You’re definitely not alone in wanting to, so you may as well go for it now, at a time when plenty of other people are gonna be in a similar boat to you.

But here’s the catch. Nothing’s going to change if you don’t do something about it. You’re the only one with the power to change what’s going on. It’s gonna take some effort from you. It might take a huge amount of effort and willpower. It might not be easy. It might be really hard – heck, it probably will be really hard. But it’ll be so worth it if this time next year, you’re looking back on everything you achieved in 2015, and saying “Yup. I left self-harm behind me” or “I let go of a bunch of stuff that was just dragging me down, and now, here I am stronger”. Do your best, and work your hardest to get yourself to a good place – to get to where you want to be.

But a bit of advice: don’t beat yourself up if you break your resolution. How many people do you see out running in the first week of January, and then how many do you still see by the end of January? People relapse all the time. Making mistakes is just a part of being human. It doesn’t mean you’re a failure. It doesn’t mean you’re never going to change. It doesn’t mean that it’s hopeless. You’ve just gotta pick yourself back up, and try again.

Having goals works best when you set small steps to reach, rather than just one big goal. So rather than making your new year’s resolution something big and vague like “be happier”, why not make it a series of little changes that will make you happier, whatever they may be. And if you end up giving in after a week, then be proud that you made it for a week! The next goal is to make it to two weeks. And if you can do one week, then there’s no reason you can’t do two.

Ultimately though, you can only change when you’re ready to. Don’t feel the need to force change just because it’s a new year and everyone else is making changes. Change might not happen right away, but you’ll get through this year. You’ve survived this many years already. 2015 might just be the year that you don’t just survive, but really live and enjoy life.
Now go kick 2015’s butt.

– Si