It’s That Time of the Year! 51 Resolutions That Mean Business

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It’s that time of the year; whether consciously or not, we are all taking stock of the year that passed and thinking about the one ahead.

You may or may not decide to set goals for the new year, but if you do, consider making them goals that change who you are rather than just what you do.

If you set a resolution that addresses who you are becoming, you don’t just change your actions; you transform your personality. Changing our actions ultimately changes our results, but it often involves endless willpower, which is, unfortunately, a limited resource.

Changing our personality leverages willpower at the start but then shifts to the practice of commitment to consistency in order to get the job done—hopefully for good. Transformational resolutions require us to set high-level goals that, if committed to, will make many everyday goals easier or unnecessary.

Take a look at the list below, and as an example, let’s take the second resolution, “I will dramatically reduce people-pleasing.”

Suppose I put my mind and actions to dramatically reducing (or, for the super ambitious amongst us, eliminating) people pleasing. In that case, I may no longer need to set lower-level goals like learning to say no or keeping my calendar clear of activities that drain me. This is because often the root cause of saying yes when we mean no and filling our calendar with crazy making activities, is our addiction to people-pleasing.

Who I become in the process of achieving this high-level goal is a person who has liberated herself from external distractions and can focus on what feels significant and purposeful to her.

Or let’s look at number 14 on the list; “I will ask powerful questions instead of striving for perfect answers.”

By teaching myself to focus on questions rather than answers, over time (not overnight), I become a person who is curious, open-minded, and always learning. So now, I don’t have to resolve to become less judgemental or less of a perfectionist—those goals will effortlessly and almost imperceptibly be achieved in the background of my becoming someone who cares more about learning than knowing.

To prompt your creativity towards setting your own transformational resolutions for the New Year, I’m sharing my list of 51 that my clients have shared with me this year. My own are mixed in as well.

In 2025:

1. I will define what enough means to me and practice “enoughness.”
2. I will dramatically reduce people pleasing.
3. I will write one sentence in a Gratitude Journal every night.
4. I will do a Thought Download instead of consuming more information before sleeping.
5. I will commit to making daily deposits in my Life Buckets.
6. I will run my own race.
7. I will stop trying to be more “interesting” to other people.
8. I will finally learn the skills to master my thoughts.
9. I will let go of control and practice being in charge.
10. I will ask for what I want, even if I’m scared.
11. I will tell the world how to treat me.
12. I will become anti-fragile.
13. I will refuse to play the perfection game.
14. I will ask powerful questions instead of striving for perfect answers.
15. I will become a masterful listener.
16. I will make my life full and not busy.
17. I will become comfortable being with myself.
18. I will follow purpose instead of passion.
19. I will stretch myself by 10% emotionally and psychologically every day.
20. I will develop my sense of purpose from self-actualization rather than from work.
21. I will serve one person a day.
22. I will not say yes when I mean to say no.
23. I will practice Radical Acceptance every single day.
24. I will let my moods follow my actions.
25. I will choose my sources of education rather than let social media choose them for me.
26. I will let Yoda’s words, “Do or do not, there is no try,” be my mantra.
27. I will do one thing a day for my loved ones.
28. I will master my understanding of price vs. value.
29. I will keep my core life values on multiple Post-it notes to be constantly reminded of them.
30. I will walk my talk.
31. I will identify my non-negotiables to make decisions like a pro.
32. I will become a master of positioning.
33. I will set Eulogy goals instead of Resume Goals (Arthur Brooks).
34. I will abandon the habit of fake humility.
35. I will not allow bad moments or bad hours to become bad days.
36. I will replace efficiency with effectiveness in every area of my life.
37. I will continuously cultivate and protect blank spaces in my calendar.
38. I will measure success by my process, not my outcome.
39. I will replace more, more, more… with less, but better.
40. I will be more courageous, especially under uncertainty.
41. I will bring 10% more presence to all my interactions.
42. I will not shame or guilt myself.
43. I will practice learned optimism (Martin Seligman).
44. I will practice respecting and listening to my intuition.
45. I will pray more consciously and consistently.
46. I will do hard things.
47. I will stop being my child’s personal assistant, concierge, and alarm clock.
48. I will stop asking how and start asking who.
49. I will become an Essentialist (Greg McKeown).
50. I will breathe—consciously, purposefully, with intention.
51. I will no longer listen to win but rather to connect.

This year, choose a resolution that will change your life, not just your month.

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