Just before you reel out your new year resolutions…

For the twenty eight year old shopkeeper, the act is something that he hopes will help him streamline his ambitions and lead to expectation at the end of the year even if he has no clue where to begin. “I need to make my resolutions before I forget,” said Emiko Ogiri. When asked why it […]

For the twenty eight year old shopkeeper, the act is something that he hopes will help him streamline his ambitions and lead to expectation at the end of the year even if he has no clue where to begin.

“I need to make my resolutions before I forget,” said Emiko Ogiri. When asked why it was necessary or him to make New Year resolutions his response was, “Isn’t it what everybody does at the time of the year?”

Further asked what resolutions he will be making this time, the thirty nine year-old said he really hadn’t given it serious thoughts; “but I will ask around to see what changes people need to make in 2013.”

The question is what is our motivation to make New Year’s resolutions and are the resolutions we make from off the top of our heads? Or do they come as a result of the necessity to make changes and take on new life styles?

Many make resolutions at the start of the year particularly to stop bad habits. But very few actually take a look at the genesis of those habits to investigate if there are other root curses that may have brought about the habits in the first place. Jane Adams (not real name) said after many unsuccessful attempts to keep her resolutions to stop alcohol she decided to look beyond the concept of making New Year resolutions. In her quest to resolve her problem she discovered it was more deeply rooted than she imagined.

“Alcohol used to be a big problem for me,” she said. “I have made resolutions over and over again that I will stop it completely or reduce my intake to a very minimal level. But until last year I was never able to see my resolution through.

“I succeeded two years ago because I decided to look at it beyond making a resolution. With the help of a counselor in my church I was able to go to a psychiatric doctor. I had therapy sessions which brought forth the reason of my alcohol abuse in the first place. I traced it to when I lost my mother. To go through the pain I found solace in alcohol. With the help of the doctor, I went through sessions and stages that helped me come to terms with the loss and deal with it. After I went through that I felt a lot lighter in my spirit and gradually began therapy to reduce my alcohol intake and eventually stopped it. This took almost one year and a half but I eventually got there and have been clean for about eight months now.”

Isaac Ise said he had to sit back to review the reasons he was unable to keep his resolutions. The thirty year old public servant said, “At the beginning of 2012, I made a resolution that I will not work late hours anymore. But half way through I realised I was still working late and sometimes even sleeping in the office.

“One weekend I took time out to sit and think. It was then I discovered that I wasn’t achieving my goals because I wasn’t planning my time properly. I was also leaving a lot of things to last minute; convincing that I worked best under pressure. But I ended up being disorganized and messed up.

“Beginning that weekend, I drew a timetable and planned my task for the following week. I did this every weekend for four weeks. It did not take any time or effort at all for things to fall in place. It was only after clearing this out that it was able to keep my New Year resolutions.

These experiences shared here urge us to think about the reasons behind our moves to make resolutions. That way it may be easier to achieve lasting results.