New Year’s resolutions: Set goals

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

Although some people think those who make New Year’s resolutions are two-faced, we can probably blame that on the Romans, who pretty much started the tradition.

The month January is named for Janus, the Romans’ two-headed god, who is seen looking both backward into the old year and forward into the New Year at the same time.

The New Year’s holiday is one of the oldest of all, going back to the ancient Babylonians, who celebrated the beginning of a new year about 4,000 years ago. However, for many years, the new year came around the spring equinox, since that was when crops were planted. Having January 1 as the first day of the new year first came in 153 B.C. when the Roman Senate decreed the calendar begin on that day. Having January 1 be the first day of the new year was solidified in 46 B.C. when Julius Caesar established what is now known as the Julian Calendar.

However, Christians changed the calendar in the Middle Ages, first designating New Year’s Day on December 25, and then later changing it to March 25 before the modern Gregorian calendar restored January 1 as the first day of the year.

New Year’s resolutions may harken back to Janus, since he was the god of beginnings, but could also stem from ancient Israel and Judaism, since it’s normal for Jews to reflect on one’s wrongdoings and both seek, and offer, forgiveness for wrongdoing during their new year’s celebrations.

Typical New Year’s resolutions include the following:

• Improving well-being (losing weight, exercising, eating better, drinking less alcohol, quitting smoking, etc.
• Improving finances (get out debt, save money)
• Getting a better job
• Improve grades, learn something knew, etc.
• Self-improvement (become more organized and manage time better, reduce stress, be more independent)
• Take a trip
• Help others, practice life skills, give to charity

According to one survey, the top 10 New Year’s resolutions include:

1. Spend more time with family and friends
2. Get more exercise
3. Lose weight
4. Quit smoking
5. Enjoy life more
6. Quit drinking
7. Get out of debt
8. Learn something knew
9. Help others
10. Get organized

While all the above are worthy goals, though, few people actually keep their New Year’s resolutions. In fact polls taken indicated that only 12 to 22 percent of resolutions are actually successful.

Although most resolutions fail, those who fulfill their goals usually have one general trait in common: they are goal-setters.

That doesn’t mean that men and women go about goal setting in the same way, though. Men usually achieved their goal 22 percent more often when they developed small, measurable goals and a strategy to achieve them, rather than just having a general goal, such as to lose weight.

Women, on the other hand, succeed 10 percent more often when they made their goals public and received support from their friends.

So whether you have made a New Year’s resolution, or just favor improving in general in the coming year, set some goals and find ways to track and meet them. The chances of you’re meeting a goal are much better when goal-setting is involved, polls show.