Resisting Resolutions

Each time the New Year rolls around people start talking about making New Year's Resolutions. Indeed the start of a New Year is a great time to think about what one can do new or differently in the coming year to improve one's life.

Many of the folks I talk with, however, no longer make New Year's Resolutions. I suspect it's because they've made resolutions in the past and found that after about two weeks the resolutions end up being forgotten or broken.

I confess that I will usually think about making resolutions for the New Year, and I may even come up with some great stuff, but I typically resist committing to a resolution because I don't want to feel guilty about not being faithful to the change. And I never share my "proposed resolutions" with anyone for fear I might actually have to hold myself accountable to a change.

I've found, however, that the flip side of my resisting resolutions is that instead of feeling guilty, I worry that I won't commit to anything. I fear that I'll have wasted another year making no real improvement with my life.

It seems to me that the reality of life is that if we aren't intentional about what we do, we'll usually end up taking the path of least resistance; we'll settle for the mediocre; we'll live less fully than what we are capable of living.

So if you've made a New Year's Resolution I hope that you will find the tenacity to stick with it. If your like me and you haven't (or you've made closet resolutions) think about ways to live with intentionality. Start small - one simple act - and then maybe work your way up to a full blown resolution.

PJ