I've never been a fan of New Year's resolutions.

I'd been making New Year's resolutions for as long as I could remember when one day I reflected back on all of the resolutions I had ever made and realized that I hadn't accomplished any of them; if I had, it wasn't planned and I wasn't doing it just so I could write a checkmark next to it on some list.

Year after year, I would be disappointed in myself for failing to follow through with any of my New Year's resolutions. I continuously wondered why I didn't have the drive or motivation to check off every single resolution like other people, when I realized, we make changes in our lives at random times because deciding to become better and do better is never planned.

Changing our lives happens when we're so fed up with this or that and we finally say "enough is enough" and change for the better. And honestly, I've never been a fan of planning things, so why plan that next big move that's going to drastically change your life? Why wait for another trip around the sun to quit the job you hate or dump the boyfriend you loathe? Why not start living your life now?

It's 2018, a number that is a fresh start for some people and nothing but a number for others.

I don't believe in making New Year's resolutions because I fail every single time. Besides that, I'm more about the here and the now and not waiting for the magic to happen, but making it happen when I'm ready.

I'm not a fan of New Year's resolutions, but I am a fan of making promises to myself to try harder and make an effort.

That's right. I'm not writing a list of resolutions, like eating healthier, losing weight, or being optimistic all the time, because the chances of those things happening exactly the way I plan are slim to none. Besides that, we all slip up from time to time and don't deserve to beat ourselves up over it. Just because we screw up on the first day of the new year doesn't mean we have to wait another 365 days to turn our life around.

I'm making a promise to myself that I will try harder to accomplish my goals and truly make an effort. If I don't receive a 4.0 in every single one of my classes like I'm aiming for but reflect back on the semester in May and realize there was nothing more I could have done because I studied as hard as I could, then I will be content because I will know that I tried. If I don't lose 10 pounds but saw myself going to the gym and eating healthy multiple times a week, I'll know I tried. If I don't acquire as much money in my savings account as I'd like but have more money leftover than last year, I'll know I budgeted to the best of my ability. I could go on and on.

The point is, make goals and try and hard as you can to accomplish those goals. But even if you don't accomplish any of your goals, at the end of the day, you'll know that you worked as hard as you could and there was nothing more you could have done. Trying and making an effort is where it all begins.

As they always say, even if you fail, you'll never know until you try.