We’ve done it. We’ve made it to a new year.

The end of the year is traditionally a time of celebration and reflection, a time of looking at what we have achieved and, perhaps, what we could have done a little better, and it is also a time of looking forward to a fresh new start — a clean slate. Who knew the anniversary of a rock circling a star would stimulate such concerted thought!

Now is also the time where readers and viewers from all walks of life encounter a universal, shared experience: ‘The New Years Resolution Article’. From newspaper-perusers to doomscrollers, frequent-blog-sloggers to magazine-rack-standers, from YouTube-Short-bingers to seasoned-Reddit-clickers, they all encounter some form of the “Here is what you should make your New Year’s Resolution” article, and if the article-writer is feeling particularly sassy they might even write a “Here’s why you shouldn’t make a New Year’s Resolution this year”-type article. Rare is a truly helpful article on the subject.

In each article the reader encounters a curated list of potential resolutions — usually in a generalized topical format to apply to the largest audience base — from which they are to select one or two polished examples as the guiding principles for the new year.

The problem with this approach is that it removes the burden of thought from the reader. Make no mistake, I am a staunch proponent for removing the burden of thought (to attack the issue at hand) in many scenarios, but when it comes to self reflection and improvement this seems ill-advised. Each person encounters problems and reaches solutions in different ways, and even though we may be able to provide general solutions that apply to a wide swath of people they will never apply to everyone — that’s just Humanity at work.

This is why the act of self reflection and improvement must be a deeply personalized affair. It’s about you after-all.

I’m a little late to the game, but that’s the point.

It is already January. The tsunami of New Year’s Resolution articles has already passed, and some readers are still cleaning up the debris. Some may have already encountered defeat in their resolve. The collective hangover from the Christmas and New Year celebrations is hopefully subsiding, and a new year lays before us. Some see blue skies, bubbling brooks, chirping birds, and crisp, fresh, air — a new Skyrim playthrough. Others see a Dark Souls boss fight. Clearly their resolution lists will be different.

Perhaps it is time to look at the approach to resolutions instead of the resolutions themselves?

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