I’ve been thinking a lot about New Year’s resolutions. If you look at them one way, you can argue they help identify areas where you can improve your health and well-being and create concrete steps to achieve your goals.
However, if you put too much pressure on yourself to always be better, with no room for error, it is easy to fall short of your expectations, which will have a negative impact in the long run.
The last few years, when I went home for summer break or J-term, my mom used to urge me to find a “project.” She thought I would be bored with all my free time and didn’t want me to default to watching TV all day.
Unfortunately, her good-intended pressure to peel me away from my screens made me stressed about finding a “project,” and feeling inadequate when I never could. Now that the ‘p-word’ is banned in our house, I can relax on my breaks and occasionally fall down the inevitable scrolling rabbit hole without the looming feeling that I should be doing something better.
So, when the end of December rolled around, I started thinking more about how I wanted my New Year’s resolutions to make me feel. I didn’t want to set unrealistic goals that I dreaded working towards. Then I remembered that there are no rules, and resolutions can be anything I want.
We all have so much we have to do. I wanted to create some goals that would make me feel like I get to do them. So, I have curated a list of fun New Year’s resolutions for 2025:
Eat at 20 new restaurants. This could be breakfast places, sit-down dinners or fast food spots.
Make a list of movies you’ve been waiting to see and watch them all by the end of the year. The “movies to watch” list in my Notes app definitely needs paring down, so I will be participating in this one.
Sign up for an art class. Even if you aren’t artistically inclined, You’re Fired in Uptown has pre-made pottery pieces for you to paint and take home.
Listen to a new album each month. Sometimes I get stuck in a musical rut where none of my music is hitting like it usually does. Listening to a fresh album can widen my taste and make my walks more exciting for a while.
Try out a new recipe each week. Pinterest and Instagram are great places to start for inspiration. If you live in a dorm, take advantage of the oven in your common space – just don’t set off the fire alarm.
Talk to someone new in every class. This can be especially useful if you are a first-year or sophomore, but even as a junior, I am still making new friends through classes.
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Commit one night a week to have dinner with your friends. You could cook a meal together, trek Uptown for a bite or even just take a big group to your favorite dining hall (or the one you hate the least).
Join at least one intramural team. These are made for people who aren’t super athletic but want to have a good time running around on a court or field. The Rec Center website has a list of teams and links to sign up.
Attend at least one Greek life philanthropy event per month. You don’t have to look too hard to find a sorority or fraternity raising money for a cause. Events at the Phi Delt gates happen weekly if not nightly, and the seal is seldom empty.
Attend at least one game, match or meet of every sport. You don’t have to stay for the whole game, but it would be cool to say that you have seen every team play.
Attend at least one student event you’ve never been to each semester. Though sports are great, the arts deserve some love, too. Go to an art show, concert, play or musical – Miami and Oxford host plenty year-round.
Have a game night once a month. Get back to your roots by playing your favorite childhood card games or board games with your friends.
I’m eager to make my way through the year with an exciting to-do list instead of a daunting one.
Molly Francis is a junior double majoring in journalism and media and communications. She has been writing for The Miami Student since her sophomore year.
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