It’s a new year and with a new year comes expectations. Expectations to change. Just because the year changes doesn’t necessarily mean you need to also. New Year’s resolutions are generally avoided, followed by groans or panic. Many stereotypical resolutions revolve around health as a result of indulging in too much couch time and too many desserts during the holiday season. But resolutions that are well thought out and simple to add to your daily life can be beneficial. Resolutions don’t need to be extreme changes in your life just improvements to start a new year strong.

People generally set unrealistic resolutions for themselves which is why many joke about giving up on resolutions in the first week of the new year. Many people say I want to exercise every day, eat healthier and lose weight. Though these are good goals to set for yourself they are very broad and require a lot of sudden change all at once. Many people set impractical resolutions which they know going into it that they won’t stick with leading to unfulfilled resolutions.

Creating a realistic New Year’s resolution consists of setting small and achievable goals that are distinct. Instead of saying I want to exercise every day in the new year your resolution can be I will go for a 20-minute walk each day. This is specific and is a reasonable amount of time that can easily be incorporated into your daily routine. The key is choosing simple things that can improve your day-to-day life.

In addition to setting specific goals that are attainable, you must reflect on why you want to improve or add this aspect to your life. This is why unrealistic stereotypical resolutions are not achieved because you don’t truly know why you want to do these things. Since you don’t have a reason to motivate yourself to complete these goals you are more likely to quit them. In order to set feasible goals, you need to reflect on your life from the past year and focus on what you can realistically add to improve your life. The world is already a crazy place, and by adding a daunting resolution you are adding to the constant stress and anxieties of day-to-day life. By reflecting on your daily actions and including small changes that lead to ease and self-improvement will ultimately unfold into a new habit.

Though the new year is a good time to start goals and habits for yourself, you don’t have to wait until the new year to make changes. If it’s January 3rd and you’ve realized you haven’t started any of your resolutions yet remember that change takes time. You can always start to make changes in your life whenever, not just on New Year’s Day. After you’ve made sure that your goals are set with good intentions that you know are achievable, be sure to enjoy them and not put too much pressure on yourself. Though resolutions are good when they are small actions meant to better yourself don’t make it an end all be all if you don’t fulfill them. Next week is as good a time as any to make changes to our hectic lives, not just New Year’s Day.