2014, un año para soñar…

It’s that time of year again, when everyone starts to think about the future and what could be. People look at the past and what they have and have not done and make a resolution to change something for the coming year.

 These resolutions are usually a novelty thing that don’t last past January but for the select few they can lead to some real positive changes in one’s lifestyle. The most common change that people make after New Year’s is to start going to the gym on a regular basis and eat healthily. I always think it’s a little funny to see masses of people turning up at their local gyms with the best of intentions for the year ahead.

The gym is packed in January with men who think they are going to be the next Rocky Balboa and women who think they will outshine Penelope Cruz. Don’t get me wrong, I think it is great to see that everyone has such good intentions but its the same thing every year; we pay our money to join a gym, we go hell for leather at it for the first four weeks and then it all goes downhill from there. Suddenly its only the familiar faces at the gym, those dedicated few who turn up day in, day out for the duration of the year and the rest of us are back on the sofa watching television and telling ourselves that we will go tomorrow. Tomorrow soon turns into next week and before long  next week turns into next month.

I think the best New Year’s resolution anyone can make is a two-part resolution. The first part should be that no matter what you choose to do or to change you have to stick to it and the second part should be the resolution itself. Maybe then you will find the motivation needed to keep it going.

New Year’s resolutions are almost always about one’s lifestyle, so it’s no surprise to hear someone say that they are going off the drink or giving up the cigarettes. Again, this type of change is a positive one but not the easiest to stick to. When you hear a friend say “that’s it, I’m not drinking anymore” or “I’m off the cigarettes for good”, you think that’s great but will this really last? Personally I wish anyone who tries to make these changes the best of luck but I have to admit that when I hear people make these announcements I often bet that it won’t last more than two weeks or a month at the most.

I think it would be a good idea to make a resolution to do something you know you will definitely do. For example, choose a place in the world that you have always wanted to go to and then save the money and go. At least this will give you something to focus on and you know that if you stick to your plan you have something to look forward to in the near future. Do something that you will enjoy.

So, for all of you who are in the midst of your new lifestyle, keep it up or face the thoughts of going through it all again next year. For those of you who have already given up, well, at least you tried I suppose and for those of you who haven’t tried anything at all, get up and do it, maybe you will surprise yourself.

G. Harman