When it comes to New Year’s Resolutions, it could just as well be a Revolution. Because it is a kind of revolt we are often hoping for as we begin again. A revolt against our own status quo. Habits we’ve gotten into, or one’s of long standing that we still haven’t shaken. We long to overcome the tyranny of those parts of ourselves that seem to have control over us, or at least our behavior at times, and maintain a conflict between our experienced selves and the self we think we should or could be.
We usually think this conflict is solved by attaining the desired goal, but a Resolution will really only be successful if it lessens our conflict. That is, a good Resolution is one that is in that sweet spot of “not so hard” so as to inflame the tyrant within, and “hard enough” to experience some measurable success. The inspiration that comes from “succeeding” at the tiniest change over a whole year is of incomparable value to any size of change that lasts only a few weeks. Most of us way overshoot the mark.
So, if you’re contemplating a Resolution for yourself this year, it helps to pick a “degree of difficulty” that seems too easy, almost trivial. The trick is to then use that easiness to insist on sticking to it for the whole year.
Good Luck! And Happy New Year!