How to keep your New Year's resolutions and not sink into a depressed sad hole by mid-January
I am writing this post a few days before New Year’s instead of on the day when it would get more clicks. (People like topical!)
Why?
Because one of my resolutions is to write more.
So I’m starting early. As you should with your resolutions.
So put down that bottle of afternoon wine, click out of Brazzers, and get ready to sign back up for jiujitsu even though you got choked out by a 17-year-old girl when you took your free trial class in September!
The resolutions start now baby!
The problem with most people’s resolutions is they make them after a post-Christmas bender. You’re in an absolute haze of booze and sugar and mothers-in-law and have been completely derailing, honestly since Thanksgiving, making it damn near impossible to stick to your goals.
It’s a little hard to quit drinking after you made a champagne toast at midnight to bring in another year that you lie to yourself.
Would you rather quit sugar after a night of sadly eating cake or after a few days of tapering down so that your sugar withdrawals don’t spark a divorce?
You want to set yourself up for success. This doesn’t happen by partying so hard on New Year's Eve that your weight loss plan turns into, “Throw up hors d'oeuvre from the night before.”
We are trying to change our LIFE. We are trying to do something to make the future us feel good and the present us proud.
By framing resolutions as a punishment for ourselves (I’ll have fun this week then do my stupid resolution on Sunday) we are destined to fail.
However, if we are framing it as something that is going to make our life BETTER then why the fuck wouldn’t you want to start right fucking now?!
“But Jamie, I’m depressed. You know about depression!”
Right. This is an even bigger reason to start now.
Our minds trick us into thinking that the things that are the worst for us are the ones that are going to make us happier.
It’s a lie.
When have you ever heard a friend say, “Man things were going really bad until I did a bunch of coke and slept with my ex! Then everything turned around!”
The things that will get us out of our funk are the things most people will add to their list of resolutions that go nowhere. Less phone more nature. Less booze more water. Gym. Meditate. Etc.
Are these things hard to do when you’re depressed? Yep.
Will you feel fucking amazing after you do them? Also, yep.
Close your computer. Throw your phone to the side. Get out a pen and paper and make a plan. Start right now. The only thing stopping you is you. Don’t be another cliche statistic who is back to the shit that ruined their life by Jan 9th. You are better than that and I believe in you!
Get to work!