New year, new you?
Ambitions must be tempered with realism
When we think of a new year, many of us think of resolutions. A new year represents a clean slate. It represents a fresh start. It represents a brand new perspective, new ideas, and an opportunity to write the words of a new book. The most common phrase that is used as a representation of a new year is “new year, new me.” This phrase is a common part of the planning that occurs for the following year. Each year, social media platforms are filled with people creating promises and resolutions to make the new year a better year than the previous one.
Re-inventing yourself is a beautiful thing. The reality is that as long as we are alive, we have the opportunity to shed the old versions of ourselves that no longer serve the parts of ourselves that strive to be better.
There is something truly wonderful about a new year. It is a fresh start for many. It is a moment that breeds hope. It allows us to take a moment to press pause and reflect. It allows us to dream big.
As the clock strikes midnight, a clean slate looms over us. Many of us are excited to walk into the future with a renewed sense of hope and purpose. However, reality paints a significantly different picture. Life does not pause. Life does not reset as much as we wish it would. The obligations, the deadlines, the responsibilities, and the unfinished projects of the previous year are all facets of our lives that follow us into the new year. They are the unwelcome guests of the new year. However, we still cling onto the fantasy of “new year, new me,” and set resolutions or make promises that we’ll work out 5 times a week, work hard in every class, meal prep like a TikTok chef, and read a book every week. Quite frankly, it’s simply too good to be true.
As university students, our plates are already overflowing with obligations, exams, tests, assignments, and millions of deadlines. So, if you’re setting resolutions, it is important to be realistic regarding your goal setting. Many of us are setting ourselves up for burnout by being unrealistic about our goals. At the end of the day, you know yourself best, and you know what works for you and what does not. Just because you saw somebody’s TikTok life, does not mean that their entire routine will align with you and your lifestyle and most importantly, your goals.
If there is one thing you must take away from this, it is to set achievable goals. Setting unrealistic goals just lead to a state of mind where we are cruel to ourselves when we fall short.
Let’s focus on the gym and working out as a resolution as an example. January is notoriously over packed with enthusiastic newcomers to the gym. We start strong. We feel strong. We feel empowered. We feel as though we can achieve anything and we can commit to this routine that we have not become accustomed to yet. By February, burnout is seeping through. And many forget about their fitness resolutions. This is due to the simple reality that setting a goal to work out every day is simply not realistic for everyone. It is not sustainable for many students.
A better tactic might be to start slowly, and commit to working out twice a week and building from there while keeping in mind that there is no one way to work out. You do not need to get a gym membership to stay active. Walking around campus is exercise enough. Taking flights of stairs is a great way to get your steps in and tone your legs. Walking to class is the best way to stay active. Resolutions are about building habits that are sustainable when it comes to your lifestyle. This means building habits that fit seamlessly into your life rather than exhausting yourself by overloading with activities and resolutions that will force you into burnout after three weeks.
The most important thing is consistency. When it comes to academic excellence, we set goals stating that we will be on top of everything. However, what happens next is inevitable. Assignments pile up, deadlines overlap and this leaves us to pull all-nighters trying to understand how we are in this position.
Focusing on consistency allows us to focus on routines rather than perfection. This could include setting deadlines each day to review your work or notes and do a small portion of work. This small portion adds up over time, proving to us the importance of small yet consistent actions as opposed to grand goals or grand actions that lead us nowhere.
Furthermore, many of us fall into an “all-or-nothing” trap where missing a workout or skipping a study session means that we have failed on our resolutions. This does not relate all of the progress we have made up until now. Embracing flexibility and self-compassion allows us to view our goals as things that will lead us to our truest potential. Being rigid will not help you in the long run.
Additionally, we need to understand the great influence that social media has over us. Social media constantly bombards us with posts of people who seemingly have their lives together. The first post you see when you open on TikTok is the influencer who wakes up at 5 a.m., drinks a gallon of celery juice, journals and meditates for an hour and still has time for their obligations. Please do not let these influencers get under your skin. Social media only represents the highlights of their lives. Oftentimes, reality is far different from what is posted online.
Does this mean that “new year, new me” is a terrible idea? The answer is, not really. While a new year serves as an opportunity for us to reinvent ourselves, it is important that we focus on the new year as representing the potential for a better version of ourselves, rather than a new version of ourselves. In 2025, let’s focus on progress rather than perfection.
