Raining Resolutions

Hey there!

Wishing you a Happy New Year! The year has taken off, and so should we - what do you think?

As we begin to traverse the ambiguous yet promising terrain of 2025, it is only fitting that we look back at 2024 - reminisce the good times, learn from the not-so-good times and envision what lies ahead of us. For generations, we have resorted to 'New Year Resolutions' to do that and yet again, its upon us to chart the year in a way we please. So, what's the catch?

The catch is that everything I have written up until now doesn't feel new. The catch is that my writing has become rusty. But, the catch also is that, one of my resolutions for this year is to make sure it never goes back to being rusty ever again.

At some point in out lives, we do face roadblocks that we sometimes tend to concoct ourselves. Maybe the first step to making resolutions come true is accepting why it became a resolution in the first place because soon after acceptance comes the ability and power to eliminate the roadblock and move ahead.

This blogpost is my avenue to communicate to myself and all my readers that setting resolutions for oneself is just 10% of the job. The rest 90% is the real deal and the effort it demands is not mammoth but the consistency it demands definitely is. Goal setting is often seen as a draining exercise - one which requires detailed contemplation of everything one wants to achieve in life. Maybe let's skew this very thought in our favor, shall we?

A recent conversation with a friend uncovered an essential way of thinking about setting goals and resolutions. Let's put it this way. Making resolutions for oneself is like knitting threads together and not being surprised when this constant effort produces a beautifully woven fabric. Setting goals must be a wheel in motion and not something stationary. The way to achieve that is to set short term, crunchable and quickly attainable goals which will pave the way for your long term goals, even without you setting them consciously.

Ah, it was so much easier when we were kids playing with building blocks. All we would do is focus on joining the blocks and continued to do that until the house was beautifully formed. That is the code. You've cracked it now. The way to achieve new year resolutions is to set small and winnable goals that we can crush on the go and progress undeterred towards the big fat hen (the long term goal I mean).

To put this into clearer context, all you need to do dear reader is grab a pen and paper and write down what is one thing you would want to accomplish before March, or what is that one vacation you want to take before April, who are the stock market stallions you want to peg your hopes onto to make great profits within the first quarter of the year, what is that one hobby you want to dedicatedly practice this month and beyond, what is that ideal diet plan you want to follow for the next 21 or so days, what is the first step towards bagging a seat in your dream college, who are those people of the society you want to help live a better life or what are the most delectable items around the town that you want to tick off your food wishlist.

These are examples I could think of in under a minute so think of the wonder it could unfold when you give your short terms goals considerable thought. Its all in here - our mind. The day we begin to learn how to control our mind and channelize our thoughts into the right places is when we can finally learn to take complete ownership of our lives.

So go ahead, set those goals, draft those resolutions and visualize how you would want to get there. Don't forget to send a 'Hey, I'm on it!' when you hit even the 10% mark because, we're in this together!