At nearly every New Year’s celebration I have ever been to, there has always been talk of resolutions for the coming year. Many people talk about going to the gym consistently, eating healthier, losing weight, or learning a new skill, but rarely are these resolutions carried out. January is the gym’s busiest season due to this resolution hype, but come February, the crowd dies down once again and life resumes it’s normal pace and cadences for most people.

I am in no way putting myself above any of this people who miserably fail at carrying out their New Year’s resolution because let’s face it, I’ve been there. I’ve made a million resolutions going into new years that have never been fulfilled. I’ve vowed to learn languages I’ve never even looked at or instruments I never ended up even touching, but this year, I want to make a change. New Year’s resolutions are actually a pretty phenomenal idea if they are carried out, but who says resolutions are only for the ringing in of a new year?

If you think about it you can actually make a resolution every day for yourself, which logically, can actually be more efficient than creating one large resolution at the beginning of each year. Think about it, creating a constantly growing list of ways to improve and grow as a person provides a sense of normalcy regarding self-improvement. Achieving a goal is definitely easier if normalcy and comfortability are involved. New Year’s resolutions are often large and looming, and a lot of times, they are things you would never even find yourself doing. Creating daily self-improvement goals allows for baby steps towards those big New Year’s resolutions you’ve always dreamed of, while allowing constant growth for yourself as a person. It ups the likelihood of your eventual achievement of those goals.

So don’t give up on your New Year’s resolutions. Make every single one of your resolutions a personal goal for yourself, but remember that these things take time. Remember to take baby steps towards improving yourself. Remember not to give up when it doesn’t happen in a week. And most importantly, remember to continue making goals throughout the year. Keep brainstorming all the amazing ways to make yourself a better person. Find something new to add to your list every day and work hard to make it a reality. People act as if improving themselves depends on some outward force, but at the end of the day, the only person who can actively work towards changing you for the better is YOU. So work hard and keep creating ways to improve yourself every day. You will thank yourself in the long run, I guarantee it.