New Years Resolutions: Just Do It.

Resolution

noun

1. A firm decision to do or not to do something.

   
   

   

   
   

   
   

   When we wake up on January 1st, 2014, almost every one of us will be A) hungover beyond belief, but more importantly B) kicking off the New Year with a fresh (albeit, clouded by an alcohol-induced fog) mindset and 'can-do' attitude. Resolutions are something that we all set with nothing but good intentions. Sure, sometimes they don't work out and you fail miserably; but that's what happens when you get your head stuck in the clouds and set yourself some unrealistic and downright impossible goals.

   
   

   The first resolution which comes to mind is the 'Oh, I'm totes going to the gym 5 times a week and lose 20lbs. Victoria's Secret models, eat your heart out'. Yeah, I think we all know it. Do you actually know the statistic for people who stick to this one though? It's only about 38%. And it doesn't get any better for other resolutions. Finding love is 31%, financial success is around 34% and scarily, only 8% of people making resolutions of any calibre will actually fulfil these by the time a new year comes around. 

   
   

   So what can we do to stick to our goals? Well start off by making realistic choices. If you want to lose weight, start by cutting bad foods out of your diet instead of doing something drastic. Want to get fitter? Take the stairs and walk as much as you can. You don't have two legs for nothing. Giving up cigs? Try cutting down by a couple a day. We all know the saying, "You want what you can't have", so don't deprive yourself or try to change overnight. These things take time.

   
   

   Those are the obvious ones, but what about other matters such as our love lives and career goals? Well love isn't exactly something that you can control - it controls you and comes into your life when you least expect it. That's what I've learned anyway. But that doesn't mean that there's absolutely nothing for you to do to improve the situation. Start by surrounding yourself with positive people; I read somewhere that we're the average of the people we see on a daily basis - so if you have a positive mind, then love may just come knocking. Get yourself out there a little bit more; try online dating, talk to the person next to you on the train in the morning, get your morning latte from another coffee shop. All of these things will introduce you to new people and work towards finding Mr (or Mrs) Right. 

   
   

   Careers. Well, what can we do to work towards bettering this? Take on extra hours, try and give your input a little more to the people who are going to take notice. Do something you don't normally do. Look at the people you aspire to and see what sort of things they're doing - it must be working for them, so why not take some tips from them. Oh, and if you're in a job that you hate? Look for a new job and quit. Don't get me wrong, I know this isn't exactly the logical thing to do when you have bills to pay, but life is for living. Stop doing something that you hate every day, just to get by. Study a new course, find an exciting career that you can realistically do and go for it. Yes, there's risks, but just think all the great things that could come from it.

   
   

   If you're a student like myself, you can do an internship, find some work experience, travel, see new places and meet new people. Everyone forgets that life is an experience and helps you to figure out the path that you're supposed to be on. I set out five years ago with the goal of working in the design industry; only now i've decided that it isn't for me and that I want something a little more challenging and engaging like fashion journalism and trend forecasting. The point is, I discovered that through taking a step back and trying new things. Everyone I went to school with has, or is soon to be graduating from their chosen degrees, whereas I still have a year and a half to go. This doesn't phase me because I'm more determined now than I ever have been to get to where I want to be. I'm glad that I took the time to figure out what I wanted, because it affected every aspect of my life and now everything is 100 times different than how it was five years ago. Hell, it's 100 times different now than it was last year!

   
   

   So when you sit down with your pen and paper (or Notes app on your new iPad Air) in the next couple of days, think of realistic things that you can do to make 2014 better than 2013. I'm going to get to the gym as much as I can (this is realistic for me because I absolutely love the gym and can get into the habit of going every day once I start), keeping a more positive outlook and focusing on my future career by applying for Camp America in the Summer, followed by an internship either overseas or in LDN. These are things that I fully intend on sticking to and I hope that you can stick to your goals as well in 2014.

   
   

   I hope you all had a lovely Christmas and have some fantastic plans to kick off the New Year in style!