As the new year comes around, so do new year resolutions. The common resolution for teens in high school range from giving up bad foods to stopping unnecessary habits. However, this year the change starts by adding a resolution rather than the “normal” giving up resolutions.
According to Peter Economy, about 60% of teens make resolutions, but only 8% follow through. For high school students across America, there has been a common pattern this year so far. That is, adding better health, positivity, a new skill, and less social media and more family and friend time. Because these four resolutions are lenient and have variety, which give students a better chance of accomplishing their 2019 goals.
Many teens imagine “getting healthy” as joining a gym and working out, but with more creativity, teens are doing more than that to become healthier. At the beginning of each week consider meal prepping; doing so, saves times, gives opportunity for people to incorporate all important nutrition in every meal, and reduces snacking that will also create a more consistent eating schedule. A second simple way to begin your journey of health is by consuming the correct amount of water daily to keep your body hydrated at all times; there are many water bottles or phone apps that track your water intake, helping you reach your goal.
Staying positive can be as easy as giving someone a compliment. Towards the end of 2018, self-happiness became a popular topic and many people focused on the idea of practicing happiness. The first step can be taken by purchasing a notebook that is dedicated to writing daily reflections on one thing that you did to impact yourself or someone positively and writing it in the journal.
Happiness can also be found by trying new things and finding a new skill you enjoy. It could be anything from taking photographs to learning how to knit. High school students tend to have busy schedules, so it is important to take the time to participate in activity, program, or committee that brings you joy.
The last resolution that has been popular among teens is limiting social media time and using that time with friends and family instead. Although media has had a huge impact on teens and is used by over 70% of them, setting reminders to put your phone down is not only good for your health, but gives you time to do other things you might not typically do. Apple has the ability to set time limit and tracks your app usage, which gives product owners the ability to be cautious of their time consumption on all media.
A resolution only takes about 20 days to make feel like a normal part of your life. The benefits from these four resolutions are far more important and effective than the disadvantages, which are minimal. Take the time to treat yourself and make the addition this year.
“This year I am going to set goals for myself because resolutions are a fun and great way to try and push yourself to become a better you,” senior Ellen Kittredge said.