We all have made some sort of new year's resolution at some point in our lives, whether it be reasonable, like being healthier, or completely insane, like losing 50 pounds in 2 months. I always thought that resolutions were a good thing, because it is good to set goals for yourself, but as I looked back in my journals at my previous new year's resolutions, I was laughing at how weird it all seemed that we set these goals for ourselves. It is a very beautiful idea. The whole, "new year, new me," thing that is always made fun of now is something that we all do, because each new year marks a new beginning for all of us. As humans, we mark our days, weeks, and years by time and dates. We look forward to birthdays and holidays, which isn't a bad thing, but I think that sometimes this causes us to undervalue all the other days in the year. And, if we don't live up to the expectations that we set for ourselves in our resolutions, we can sometimes feel as if we failed, when really, a lot of growth and accomplishment could've happened in that year.

That being said, this year as I was writing a journal entry on new year's eve, I decided that I would not make such specific, somewhat shallow resolutions. My one and only resolution for this year was to work on growing as a person and becoming a better me. I outlined this as strengthening my positive relationships with people, focusing on making myself the best I can be everyday and building up my confidence, working on my patience, and strengthening my relationship with God. All of these things all have one thing in common: they all demonstrate a growth mindset. A person with a growth mindset takes their failures and successes and applies them to their life, and moves forward in their life and in what they are doing to improve. A person with a fixed mindset, when faced with hardships, would shut down and just say that they failed, and there is nothing more to it. These goals that I have set for myself are not specific and detailed, but are more open. No matter what I do this year, I will be successful, because I will have grown as a person and improved myself in some way.

I encourage everyone to ditch the traditional resolutions and come up with one or two that will enable you to really show some personal growth this year. Make them less about your physical self, and more about your mental, emotional, and spiritual self. This year, try to focus on the positives, and when times are tough, remember all the good things you have accomplished and that you like about yourself, and always remember to pray.