January 1st as a symbol
In my week notes today, I wrote a semi-nonsensical blurb about resolutions. In short, I find the concept of resolutions silly. Rather, I find the concept of New Year's resolutions silly.
There is something admirable to making a resolution, whether it's for self-improvement (I will make better efforts to be in tune with the emotions of other people) or working toward a goal (I will write 2 blog posts per week).
The silly part about New Year's resolutions specifically is selecting an arbitrary date to make these proclamations. I understand the symbolic nature of it—starting a year with a clean slate—but if there's something you want to improve or accomplish, or a new habit you want to form, the best time to start is Now.
Additionally, it's helpful to create realistic resolutions. I don't mean that you shouldn't set a lofty goal that you don't think you can accomplish. Go ahead, set whatever goal you want! What I mean is that in addition to setting a goal, sketch out a plan to how you'll accomplish that goal. There's the classic joke that applies here: How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.
Here's an example: I want to be more in tune with other people's emotions. That's a vague goal, and hard to quantify. How do I know if I've succeeded? Realistically, this is not a goal with an end-point, but that's not an issue. What I've determined is that the best way to start is to be in tune with my own emotions. To that end, I've started listening to the audiobook for Altas of the Heart (Brené Brown). So far I've gotten a lot out of it (even though audiobooks are not my preferred method of learning). The next step after that is probably more introspection but also trying to find other reading material.
Or what about blog posts? Let's say I wanted a specific cadence of 2 blog posts a week. It's an easy goal to break down: set aside dedicated writing time, and write. Work on one post a week consistently. Then move up to 2. And then keep it going.
But no matter what you want to do, start working on it now. Don't wait for January 1st to roll around.