The first day in Jan. seems like the best time to set new goals and expectations for yourself, but is it worth it in the long run?

Only 9% of New Year’s resolutions are completed, according to a 2022 statistic by insideoutmastery.com. When thinking about setting resolutions with this mindset, it seems silly to consider making them at all.

Some of the most popular resolutions include healthier eating and lifestyle habits, less time on social media or the internet, cutting out soda or fast food and budgeting. However, there are plenty of unique new ideas out there such as using GPS less often or breaking a world record.

“New Year’s Resolutions I don’t take too seriously,” senior Sebastian Mercado said. “I think it’s a good way to start the year with goals and motivations, but it’s nothing I do super seriously.”

Why do people put themselves through this disappointment every Jan. when statistically they will let themselves down? The “fresh-start effect” is said to give people hope in accomplishing goals if they start on temporal landmarks. This can be something as small as “I’ll do it in the morning,” but also includes setting resolutions for the new year.

All throughout high school and middle school, I would have the same goals for each incoming year. Once I moved away from home, however, I stopped putting unmanageable expectations on myself and decided that instead, I would try to give myself a fresh start whenever I thought it was necessary, even if that meant it was in the middle of the year.

Are there psychological or physical benefits to making New Year’s resolutions? Some may argue that there is no reason to wait to start on your goals when you could start improving now. However, for some people, it may be easier to take advantage of the “fresh-start effect” and take some time to prepare yourself for the gains you are getting ready to obtain.

“I think New Year’s resolutions can be a great motivation to make a change in your life, but it can also be daunting and promote setting unrealistic expectations for yourself,” freshman Liberty Barber said.

A friend of mine has a different approach. At the beginning of every year, they choose one big goal to accomplish, but instead of allowing themselves to procrastinate, they cut it down into monthly landmarks to make it seem more manageable while looking ahead.

Overall, New Year’s resolutions are not worth it for me, but I can see how it helps many other people to analyze all they have done in the past year and decide what changes they’re ready to make in the new year.