Best Top Ten New Year's Resolutions

Of the many fascinating and unusual New Year's traditions, the annual writing down of New Year's resolutions, these self-imposed vows to improve, revive, or otherwise completely overhaul our lives, is one of the most interesting. The exchanging of resolutions over a glass of champagne at a New Year's Eve party is almost a national pass-time.

What is it about this time of year that prompts us to try to improve our lives? Why do we go to all the trouble of writing down these impossible dreams, only to break them a few short weeks later? ...and are they truly impossible?

We've all made them, tried to keep them, and broken most of them before the first month of the new year was done and down. Some resolutions have not even survived the week in which they were made. I have written them in my diary, in a grade-school essay, and on a cocktail napkin, but no matter where they were first noted down, they rarely survived long past their initial inscription.

When we were very young, my sister and I were given our first "Personal Diaries" for Christmas by some well-intentioned relative. We had received Autograph Albums before, but this was a new concept - having a place to write down our very own private thoughts.

When the thrill of having a little locked book began to wane sometime during the second day of the holidays, we asked our mother what we should write in the little books besides our very own private thoughts. She suggested that we write down some New Year's resolutions.

That was the beginning of what was to become an annual tradition of deciding what I wanted to amend, exchanging my list with others, and then laughingly pointing the finger at the first ones to flinch and loose their way on the path to self-improvement.

My first list started with the usual, "Do the dishes without being asked," "Be nicer to my sister - no more fighting," and "Clean up my room and make my bed without being told." By the time I was a few years older, I had begun to enlarge my scope to include wishing for "world peace and goodwill to all men". I'm still not sure how I thought I would achieve that, but it seemed a satisfyingly lofty goal to a twelve year old.

Many of us make resolutions out of a sincere desire to improve ourselves andr our lives. Usually we have every intention of keeping them, but we often make the goals so difficult to achieve that we grow discouraged and give up. Perhaps, as in this lovely lyric from ABBA, the desired results are worthy but slightly beyond the reach of most ordinary mortals.

A great sentiment for any New Year's Eve, expressed as only ABBA can:

Happy New Year

No more champagne

And the fireworks are through

Here we are, me and you

Feeling lost and feeling blue

It's the end of the party

And the morning seems so grey

So unlike yesterday

Now's the time for us to say...

Happy New Year

Happy New Year

May we all have a vision now and then

Of a world where every neighbour is a friend

Happy New Year

Happy New Year

May we all have our hopes, our will to try

If we don't we might as well lay down and die

You and I

Sometimes I see

How the brave new world arrives

And I see how it thrives

In the ashes of our lives

Oh yes, man is a fool

And he thinks he'll be okay

Dragging on, feet of clay

Never knowing he's astray

Keeps on going anyway...

Happy New Year

Happy New Year

May we all have a vision now and then

Of a world where every neighbour is a friend

Happy New Year

Happy New Year

May we all have our hopes, our will to try

If we don't we might as well lay down and die

You and I

Seems to me now

That the dreams we had before

Are all dead, nothing more

Than confetti on the floor

It's the end of a decade

In another ten years time

Who can say what we'll find

What lies waiting down the line

In the end of eighty-nine...

Happy New Year

Happy New Year

May we all have a vision now and then

Of a world where every neighbour is a friend

Happy New Year

Happy New Year

May we all have our hopes, our will to try

If we don't we might as well lay down and die

You and I

by Benny Goran Andersson & Bjoern Ulvaeus

The most popular resolutions are not so lofty as to be impossible to achieve, but sticking to them can take a good deal of "resolve", hence the term, New Year's "resolutions". Keeping your resolutions is supposed to be an exercise in character building, as well a means of improving your life.

1. Stop Smoking - This resolution is one of the most often cited. Some of us seem to need that extra boost of telling everyone that we are done with this increasingly expensive habit to be able to stick to our decision to quit. Viewed by some as more of an addiction than a "bad-habit", though, smoking can be a tough one to overcome. Successful cessation of smoking can sometimes require a lot more than a strong resolve. The simplest and best advice I have ever heard about quitting smoking is this: You are either a smoker, or a non-smoker. Decide which one you are, and be that.
2. Quit Drinking - How many times have you heard this one? ...and usually from someone who has had far too much to drink. I have heard this one slurred into my ear, mumbled into my lap by a sadly hungover sufferer, and hollered from across the proverbial "crowded room." Regardless of the circumstances, this resolution, though one of the most often invoked, is also the least often kept - at least for any length of time.
3. Loose Weight / Go On A Diet - This seems to be another very difficult one to maintain. Much like the stair stepper that languishes in the spare bedroom, or the gym membership (see below ) that is never used, sticking to a weight loss plan is easy to start but hard to maintain. Starting it at the end of the holiday season, on New Year's Eve does give you a psychological edge to start with, but the return to the regular grind after the holiday season can also make following a restricted eating plan seem as equally dull and boring, when compared to the treats you enjoyed during the holiday.
4. Start An Exercise Program / Get Fit - (see above ) So many of us start off gang-busters on this one and peter out after a while. One of the best ways to actually achieve your goal here is to enlist the help of a friend - better yet two or three friends. You can all keep each other on track
5. Get Out Of Debt / Take Control Of Spending - Having our finances under better control, getting a handle on impulse buying, and paying off our debts fit under the "getting our finances in order" umbrella. This can be challenging, especially if we have allowed things to just roll along organically with little planning. Contacting a financial planner or investment counselor can be the first positive step towards keeping this resolution on track.
6. Eat More Healthily - This can be a bit tricky if you and your loved ones aren't up for moderate change, but even sneaking minced or shredded veggies into the meatloaf can be a start. Check out your local bookstore, the entertainment or life styles section of your newspaper, or hop online, and you can be knee-deep in recipes for healthy cuisine in no time at all. Many of these new-age subversives are quite gifted at hiding healthful food choices under the guise of mouth-pleasing, and even mildly decadent "nummies."
7. Take Some Time Just For Yourself - Whether it's a spa day, a weekend get-away, or simply sending Dad out with the kids for a few hours on the weekend, you do deserve some "down time." We seem to have a problem meting out to ourselves even a portion of the affection and attention we lavish on our families and friends without a second thought. Relax with a good book, listen to your music, indulge yourself in a little treat - you deserve it.
8. Spend More Quality Time With Kids &/Or Family - ...and on the other end of the scale, we may feel we need to plan some time with our family and special friends. It's so easy to drift along and let our busy schedules dictate every minute of our lives. We can so easily lose contact with each other, or mistake a smattering of conversation over a hurried meal before we rush to another activity for spending time together. Build in some family time - a games night, or activities the whole family can enjoy together. Plan for some time with good friends - pick a movie or group activities that will challenge as well as entertain..
9. Learn Something New / Go Back To School - My granny always maintained you were never too old to learn something new. Many people go back to school after they have retired from their careers, or take up hobbies they always put off starting, citing a lack of time. You don't have to wait 'til retirement, though, or drop everything to go back to school full-time. Many community colleges and rec centers offer afternoon and evening classes for a wide variety of interests, from hobbies and arts to academics.
10. Get Organized / Be On Time - ...and with this item, we have returned to the realms of lofty and difficult-to-maintain goals. A good place to start is the magazine rack for the most recent copy of a publication that specializes in reducing clutter and time management tips. There are lots of useful and simple strategies to follow in both areas, but they will require effort and consistency to achieve. The pay-off will be that you will have a tidy house, a workable schedule, and arrive on time and un-flustered.

As for me, I will just grab another cocktail napkin on New Year's Eve, and jot down a few lofty, far-too-idealistic, and probably unachievable resolutions...me and ABBA...and they can have the last words on this topic...