Do you like making New Year’s resolutions this time of year? Or, are you in the camp that says they’re a waste of time? As someone that loves making goals and seeing them through, I’m honestly somewhere in the middle. I don’t think every resolution is a worthy one, but I also think that the process of self reflection is underrated!

I’ve had some years where my resolutions went fabulous (my 2009 resolution was to start a blog) and I’ve also had years that my resolutions were forgotten by mid-March. Today, I thought I’d share some of my tips and thoughts for what to consider when penning your resolutions.

Tip #1: Make sure the goals are yours.

Chances are, your Facebook feed is starting to fill with friends sharing challenges like these:

• 12 Week Weight Loss Challenge (may or may not include a “buy in”)
• Project 365 (take a picture every day for a year)
• Run 1,000 miles next year
• Save $10 every week for a year

I am easily moved by my friends’ enthusiasm for challenges and goals like these and can very quickly mistake that for my own interest, if I’m not careful. However, I’d really caution you about adopting other people’s goals without careful thought. Some of these require big commitments and may or may not align with what matters most to you. For instance, I’ve decided I’d like to run a 6:30 mile (or faster) in 2016. That’s a much more meaningful goal to me than making sure I’ve hit an arbitrary number of miles next year or completed a 365-day running streak.

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