The greatest New Year’s resolution

Noticing that others were blatantly anticipating my next failed attempt, I gave myself a short rest. Meanwhile, to my left was an incredibly fit man bench pressing about 300 pounds with little effort. Attempting to save myself from further embarrassment, I left the bench press and made my way over to his bench press machine. Recognizing my face from the Daily Journal, we exchanged laughs over a conversation.

It turns out this man held quite a busy work life outside of the gym. Curious, I asked him how he maintained a consistent daily workout routine given his demanding schedule. “I take it one day at a time,” he said. Quite motivated, I replied that I would start my new daily workout routine the following day. The man reluctantly laughed, suggesting that I did not get it. “There is no tomorrow,” he said. “As long as there is a tomorrow in your mind, you will never accomplish what you intend to today.”

It took me a while to grasp the essence in the man’s statement. The fact is that many of us never accomplish our short- and long-term endeavors because there is always the reassurance of a tomorrow, next month or new year in our foresights. Unfortunately, our false reassurance of more time can blind us to what matters most: the present moment. This often makes us unmindful that no day or moment is promised. This is precisely why many of us fail in accomplishing our New Year’s resolutions. When we fail to make life-changing decisions today, we depend on a clock without any guarantees of tomorrow.

Whether myth or fact, people genuinely believe in the power of New Year’s resolutions. The new year always brings with it an opportunity to change a lifestyle and bad habit, or make changes that we failed to make in the previous year. It is the idea that the new year will bring with it a new hope for self-improvement. Among the most common New Year’s resolutions are developing healthier eating habits, more frequent exercise and dedicating more time for personal endeavors.

If we are to change, let us change for today. If we are to incorporate more time for exercise in our daily routine, let us begin today. If we intend to spend more time with family, let us start today. If we intend to place more genuine effort into our work, let us start right now. There is no guarantee that we will fulfill our dreams or short-term goals this year. There is a guarantee that if we do not begin to better ourselves today, we may never have an opportunity in the uncertain future. The bottom line is that we should never depend on a new year to do what only a decision can for our future.

A native of Pacifica, Jonathan Madison worked as professional policy staff for the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Financial Services, from 2011-2013. Jonathan works as an attorney and can be reached via email at jonathanemadison@gmail.com.