New Year’s Resolution Or Theme Based Year, How Can You Plan Your Coming Year?

New Year’s resolution and theme based year are two different ways that individuals seek to plan out their goals for the coming year. What exactly do they mean and how can you choose what works for you?

New Year’s resolution and theme based year are two ways that individuals use to plan out their goals for the coming year. New Year’s resolution includes specific goals set by individuals to achieve during the coming year. However, Theme oriented year is when an individual chooses one theme to concentrate on during the coming year. New Year’s resolution is a ritual that is very common in the West. However, it was originally practiced 4000 years ago by the Babylonians, who resided in modern day southern Iraq, as they made vows to the Gods on what they will do with their earnings and debts. On the other hand, theme oriented year is a recent approach that individuals use to avoid hard set inflexible goals.

New Year’s resolutions differ from one person to another, for example, a 19-year-old university student’s New Year’s resolution might include volunteering at least once a week, finishing assignments at least two days before the due date, exercise four times a week or sticking to a budget.

In some cases, some might move the previous year resolution to the list for the coming year as they have failed to complete it. According to Richard Koestner -a professor in psychology – there are three ways to avoid failing your New Year’s resolutions. First, individuals must acquire clear and specific goals. Second, they must supervise their progress toward their goals across the year. And third, individuals must obtain adequate self-regulatory and durability to face any obstacles, (Koestner, 2008).

In contrast, theme oriented year differs from the New Year’s resolution, it includes only one major theme rather than diverse goals. The theme can be a word that represents an element that is missing in your daily life. For example, the theme can be a healthy lifestyle, where an individual will try to exercise more frequently and eat healthier meals. Another example of a theme oriented year can be reading, that can include reading more books, newspapers, and academic journals during that year.

As an individual, I prefer having a New Year’s resolution rather than a theme oriented year, as it includes diverse and more specific goals. Furthermore, New Year’s resolution is a detailed personal outline for me to acquire a holistic view of myself and progress towards my goals. In addition, New Year’s resolution portrays the goals that I believe would change me into my ideal self.

References

Koestner, R. (2008). Reaching One’s Personal Goals: A Motivational Perspective Focused on Autonomy. Retrieved December 12, 2016, from self determination theory: http://selfdeterminationtheory.org/SDT/documents/2008_Koestner_CanPsyc.pdf.pdf

Pruitt, S. ( 2015 , December 30). The History of New Year’s Resolutions. Retrieved December 14, 2016, from History in the headlines: http://www.history.com/news/the-history-of-new-years-resolutions