I’ve noticed a lot of friends, family members, and social media followers speaking about their “new year, new me” mentality for 2018. To be perfectly honest, I don’t see the appeal anymore. I’ve realized self-improvement is an individual journey, and you’ll always be disappointed if you expect it to perfectly coincide with the change of the year. If you’re one of those “new year, new me” crusaders, consider this article your invitation to re-evaluate that resolution and focus on getting comfortable with who you already are this year.
Personally, I’ve never been one for self-acceptance, and my resolutions reflected that negativity. Yes, I too subscribed to the “new year, new me” mentality. One year, I believed I was too fat and resolved to work out. Another year, I thought I was too ugly and resolved to wear makeup every day. Last year, I thought I was stupid and resolved to spend all my time studying. I grew more and more disappointed as I failed to embrace my “new self” at the beginning of each year. It wasn’t until I was trying to come up with this year’s resolution that I realized what the problem was.
A new year isn’t a good enough reason to make a change; you have no incentive other than a different number at the end of the date to show for it. This December, I realized that it was unfair of me to expect a new year to serve as a magical key to change and self-acceptance. Instead of setting unreasonable goals, strive to be as authentically YOU as possible. There’s no need to apologize for yourself and change the “undesirable” parts of you.
In 2018, take the new year and introduce it to the same you from 2017. Instead of focusing on turning into someone new altogether, focus on seeking new opportunities for yourself. Be who you were; instead of focusing on negative thoughts of being “too ugly, too dumb, or too fat” like I thought I was, focus on being more kind, more outgoing, and more adventurous. Take this positivity and apply it to your resolution. This year, I’m looking forward to being the same me I’ve always been… it’s worth it, and I’m starting to think I’m worth it. I hope you do the same. May 2018 be your year of self-acceptance and natural improvement, and may you start 2019 with only one goal: “new year, same me.”
HCXO,
Megan