As 2026 looms closer, it is time once again to reflect on how our year has gone. It is time to think about our commitments, habits, and growth throughout 2025. What have we learned? What have we accomplished? And most importantly, who do we aspire to become?
The concept of a “fresh start” at the beginning of a year has opened up doors to the infamous New Year’s resolutions that are often the freight on our backs, something that weighs us down as the year progresses. Many of us start the year with big goals, confident that by the end of the year, we’ll be unrecognizable. Spoiler alert: this is almost always untrue. The saying “less is more” follows through with making New Year’s resolutions, especially for busy high school students. Drawing the line between realistic goals and unrealistic ones is vital to preparing for a successful year.
Common themes for resolutions are focused around individual health, career, and mindset. It is more feasible to complete your goals if they are specific. For example, if you wanted to become more active during the new year, implementing a fully outlined, detailed workout plan would make it easier for you to accomplish your goal.
Beginning with attainable goals is especially helpful if you lead a busy lifestyle. When it comes to making time for your resolutions, sacrificing a part of your day, maybe that daily TikTok scroll time, to take a walk can easily become a way to complete your resolutions and aid in destressing. This small devotion towards your goal can motivate more significant changes, helping to accomplish something greater.
One of the biggest reasons a majority of New Year’s resolutions do not last beyond the first quarter is due to a lack of motivation. Before creating your goals, consider why you want to make that change. Confidence is key when it comes to following through with your goals, so ensure that you are confident in your resolutions and in who you want to become as a result. Finalize only the goals that you are completely committed to. Throughout the year, remember what your goals mean to you and your future. If this means creating a vision board to visualize your accomplishments, then shape one that aligns with your plans and personality. Most importantly, consistency is key to making lasting changes to your future. Following through with allotted time for your new goal each day would allow for a routine to emerge, perhaps even becoming habitual.
New Year’s resolutions are implemented by millions on a global scale. Like many high school students, celebrities world-wide lead fast-paced lives. “To live more in the present and less on my phone,” said Kourtney Kardashian in 2015, referring to her New Year’s resolutions. According to the Evening Standard, Nick Jonas’s 2025 New Year’s resolutions included, “his desire to ‘take bigger risks’ going forward.” In 2025, Crime World reported Camilla Cabello’s resolution “‘to play more sports.’”
In the end, New Year’s resolutions,while they tend to be something we push to the back of our minds and avoid as much as possible, can be a healthy way to achieve individual progress. One year is ample time for everyone to make change in a multitude of ways. From concept to execution, the resolution process is an engaging challenge for all. With the year of 2025 coming to a close, the inevitable question once again arises: who do you want to be?
