How To Actually Accomplish Your 2025 Resolutions

Every year, we all get trapped in the idea of coming up with the perfect New Year’s resolutions, making a detailed plan to make them happen, and then feeling immediate guilt the second we mess up our goal of sticking to them. It’s February now, so we’re about two months into 2025. While I’m sure there are some people out there who are absolutely nailing their resolutions, I think the vast majority of us are not. 

I’m here to tell you that that’s okay. It’s not normal to set goals or make lifestyle changes without a little bit of trial and error. Nothing is as easy to actually do consistently as it feels in your head. And, as cliche as it sounds, nobody is perfect. So of course your attempts at a New Year’s resolution are not going to be perfect either. 

You’ve probably been placing a lot of pressure on yourself these past two months to accomplish as much as possible and turn your whole life around. When that inevitably doesn’t happen the way you want it to, you only get harder on yourself. This year, instead of setting resolutions, I set out to make slow and steady changes, and it’s been much better for my mental health. 

1. New habits with no pressure 

I don’t think that you should switch from full-throttle resolutions to no goals at all – rather, I suggest choosing one or two new habits (perhaps every month) to slowly introduce to yourself and your routine. For example, my best friend and I bought matching gratitude journals at the beginning of the year, but I’m not forcing myself to religiously write in it every single day. I leave the journal out where I can see it, and when I feel called to use it, I do. If it’s 10 pm and I just got in bed, and I think, oh no, I didn’t write in the gratitude journal, I don’t force myself to get up and do it when what my body really wants is to just go to sleep. I would just do it when I had time the next day. This makes the habit more enjoyable as I’m trying it out for the first time, and I’ve slowly built up a comfortability with it that allows me to do it for more days in a row than I would be able to if I was forcing myself to do it. 

2. Save your energy  

A big idea for me this year is learning how to say no. You might feel a pressure to attend every club meeting, work extra shifts, or say yes to every workout class, especially if you set resolutions in any of these areas. Know that it’s okay and perfectly normal to take steps back when you are starting to feel burnt out. It’s better to take breaks or let go of some responsibilities so that you can show up as your best self when you are present. Your “resolutions” will work out better when you are well rested, both physically and energetically. Prioritize me-time and have practice with saying no. 

3. Change your vision boarding practice 

I love a vision board as much as the next person. However, they can be kind of unrealistic. They also tend to get a lot of attention for about the first week of January and then fall forgotten about, or lose their motivating powers all together. What I like to do instead is make a little mood board for each month. Thinking in smaller terms usually helps make it more realistic. Look for pictures and images that are in “first person” so that instead of looking at other people accomplishing your dreams, you can think of it as yourself doing so. Add quotes that move you so that it’s not just meaningless pictures. And, make sure that when you select what to add, you’re choosing things that truly are realistic for you in that month. Maybe pick one lifestyle focus for the month rather than hyper-specific goals that you may or may not meet. 

These are just three actionable ideas for keeping your mental health in tip-top shape as we progress into 2025, but do what works for you! Remember that all of your goals you brought into the new year are absolutely possible, but it’s important to give yourself grace. It is so much easier to take the year month by month and day by day. I believe in you!

• life
• productivity