Making New Year’s resolutions is like declaring “I am unhappy in those areas right now and if I do X and Y I’ll be happy in the future.”
My problem with that is if I tell myself e.g. not to drink coffee it’s like an invitation to drink twice as much as usual. Don’ts don’t work for me.
Resolutions make me feel good at the moment. Until a new year comes around and I realize what all the things are I haven’t done. Resolutions are a sure way for me to not achieve happiness.
Instead, I’ve tried to set themes for the new year, but those didn’t work either.
And now I think it makes more sense for me to make a “Happy list” with all the things that made me happy the last year. Those things are mostly activities, and I want to make sure they have a place in this year as well. I think that’s a good start.
I want my life to be about embracing the good and not about avoiding the bad.
Happy New Year!