Where did they come from?

Everyone is familiar with the concept of New Year’s resolutions, but why do we have them? The tradition started around 4000 years ago with the Babylonians making promises to the gods to pay their debts and return any borrowed objects. The ancient Romans had a similar tradition where they made promises of good conduct to the god Janus. Early Christians dedicated the New Year to becoming a better person.

Why they aren’t actually beneficial to you

While the concept of becoming a better person is a good idea, its rare for someone to actually go through with it. Some of the more popular resolutions include going to the gym, eating healthier, getting organized, saving money, and living life to the fullest.

Going to the gym might seem easy and doable but the truth is, you’re going to go for a week, take a rest day, and never come back. The gyms are the ones who gain more from this resolution with all the memberships. If you don’t actually go through with going to the gym regularly, its a bother for the regulars to have all the New Year’s Resolutionists taking up machines and equipment.

Stores benefit from people having New Year’s resolutions because it gives them a new category for advertisement. Products that promote weight loss or seem to get your life together are best sold in January when everyone feels like fixing their lifestyle.

How to actually get your life in order

A better idea for getting your life together would be to start now; whether right now for you is February, right after the resolutions have worn off, or July, when you’ve realized its too late for a summer body. Start working out at home to save yourself the gym fee; it’s also easier to get into the habit of exercising when you don’t have to make the trip to the gym and worry about other people judging you.

If being more organized is what you want to do try using what you already have so you don’t end up buying more things than what you’re actually going to use. That would just result in more clutter to your unorganized life. Try using a calendar or journal app on your phone to keep tasks and events in order instead of buying a paper version which is harmful for the environment.