Whether you desire to become more active, educated, or organized, the new year offers the chance to begin again. In the previous year, maybe you made it a goal to learn a new language. So in January, you downloaded Duolingo and began to learn Italian. But as May came around, finals, work, and the excitement of summer led you to slowly drift away from your goal. You couldn’t hold on to your goal, so you decided that instead of picking it back up, you would wait until the new year to begin again. You’re not alone in trying to pursue a goal, and every time a new year comes around, many see it as the time to hit the ground running. Although you only made it to May, in doing so, you succeeded more than most in retaining your goal.
The Ohio State University found that despite there being an abundance of resolution makers, research suggests only nine percent continue with theirs until the end of the year. 66% of those who make goals don’t even make it out of January. With such a low number of people being able to continue to the end of the year—or even beyond 1/12 of the year—I would argue that there is a fragility that comes with a new year’s resolution. After a holiday break, obligations and responsibilities carried over from the previous year can make it seem like it’s too much to dedicate time to a new hobby. Despite some finding success in their new year’s resolution, I believe that the key to holding onto a resolution is to not make your goal hinge on the new year, but rather, think of 2025 as a personalized marathon course.
I believe that when many people make resolutions they see the beginning of the new year only as a marker, and not things around it. It’s a great goal to learn a new language, pick up tons of books, or finally hit a goal race time and use the new year as the time to do it. However I think that by grounding a goal solely in a time marker, i.e. new years, next week, or in 10 minutes, people often set themselves up for failure. By telling yourself, I’ll start it tomorrow or I’ll wait until next year, it leads you to sabotage yourself. By pushing your start time, you delay your success.
For a long time I tried to make a new year’s resolution, but it just didn’t work for me. I didn’t plan ahead and, despite having a goal, I think the excitement of a new year just outweighed the goal itself. However, having been in college for almost two years, I’ve started making time for a goal as soon as I think of it, and oddly enough at the least I’ve been able to retain working at the goal. Prior to the new year, having spent most of my time completing papers, articles, and still finding time to pursue creative interests, being physically active fell to the wayside last semester.
This year I adopted the view of a new year as the beginning of a marathon. A hobby I love is listening to podcasts. Someone that came onto the scene last year was Jake Shane, the host of Therapuss. He has a variety of musicians, actors, and his friends on to talk about their projects and their lives. In April, he had his friend Brett on. In the episode, because she is going to run the Boston Marathon, he raised the question if all marathons are the same length. She said they are, but that the courses are what is different. Coming from New England and having a dad who ran the Boston Marathon, it was interesting to hear the perspective of a young girl whose plan was to tackle the course. My goal was to be more active this year and despite not having a goal as ambitious as running an actual marathon, I thought it could be fun to think of 2025 as a new course. If every year is like a marathon with its hills, straightaways and learning curves, why couldn’t my experiences prior to 2025 act as my training?
Here are a few ways I applied a marathon outline to my outlook on 2025:
- Goals are a mile marker, not a roadblock.
Usually when people talk about marathon courses, they speak about it in terms of miles. For example, oh, on mile 6 there’s a really steep hill or, if they have run a race more than once, mile 16 is when I get to see that really cool building. When 2026 comes around, I want to be able to look back on my year the way runners look back on their race. What I think makes this perspective important is that you can’t necessarily change the course. If there’s a steep hill at mile 6, you can’t get in a car and drive straight to mile 7 to avoid it—that defeats the point of taking on the challenge of the course. You have to embrace the challenge as you hit it. I believe that it’s the same for goals. If I have the idea that I want to go outside more, despite it being cold and snowy, it might be fun to get outside now, instead of waiting until August when I know it’s going to be nice out.
- Try to run it, but you can always jog.
I mentioned that my experiences in previous years could act as my training towards how I handle certain situations now. Oftentimes when you register for a marathon, you need to pay an entry fee or get a sponsor. I didn’t pay a direct fee for 2025; however, I did receive a course. People train prior to a marathon, and all with different intentions. Perhaps they want to place a certain spot or hit a personal record. However, there are so many factors that could impact a participant prior to a race, and maybe something happens that makes them unable to hit a pr. I hear so many people say, this wasn’t my year, but maybe next year will be better. That thought can be encouraging, but you won’t get the same course. Your training and money spent doesn’t go away just because you took longer to run a mile than you thought you could. By embracing the current year, even if a certain week or month doesn’t go well, it can be better than quitting a goal completely.
- The finish line has a different prize for everyone.
In marathons, people who finish receive a finisher medal. It’s a piece that’s uniquely designed for the race that marks the racer’s ability to have completed the race. I didn’t receive a medal for 2024 and I don’t think most people get medals on Dec. 31st. What we do get is a year to look back on. New year’s resolutions offer people a way to look back on a year and say, yes, I made a resolution and stuck to it. However, studies show that not many people get to say this. What I hope to look back on on Dec. 31 is that, despite all the challenges I faced, I was able to hold onto the little goals I did begin. The roadblocks, steep hills, the people lining the roads with positive signs cheering on their loved ones and strangers, and the success of having completed the year.
The same race on the same course can look different to everyone. The same year with the same twelve months can be different for everyone. What is important to remember is that at the start of 2025 we have the ability to make the year whatever we want it to be. Whatever your goals are, by starting them as soon as you can, and not waiting for “the perfect moment”, the year can be more to you than just a couple of months.