johnmaconline

The point of resolutions is to become a better you through activities, experiences, and habits. 

But you’re still you. 

And who you are is exactly what this world needs. Sure, you want to evolve, but you don’t want (and can’t) become someone else. We need you, not somebody else. 

Trying to become someone you aren’t is a recipe for unrealized resolutions. 

So what does this mean for choosing resolutions?

First, no comparitus. Don’t make resolutions based on celebrities’ and social media influencers’ results, nor on your friends and neighbors. They’re different people, even if they claim they can “show you step-by-step how to…”

Second, be honest with yourself about what you like and hate. The surest way to blow your resolutions is to require willpower to do something you hate.

If you abhor the gym, don’t make a resolution about going to the gym. Instead, make a resolution around a physical activity you love. Getting “in shape” (whatever that means) doesn’t require a gym membership. 

Always be you. 

Many times we make resolutions based around elimination or stopping a bad habit. 

“I will stop drinking,” or, “I will eliminate sugar,” or “I’ll quit doomscrolling.”

There’s nothing wrong with those on the surface. But if we haven’t setup our environment correctly, or we cannot avoid the environment, you’ll keep hitting the same triggers and your willpower won’t be enough. Stress. Fatigue. The fridge. The phone. The friends. The Friday night routine. You can’t white-knuckle your way through a life that keeps handing you the same temptation.

So don’t start with elimination. Start with addition. 

Just take on one new thing. Something small and easy (maybe even silly), but feeds right into where you’re trying to get to. Every other drink at the bar is a club soda with lime. Ten pushups before you get in the shower. Carrots with your cookie. A walk after lunch. Sleep with your phone in a different room. 

One tiny addition becomes a foothold and that foothold becomes traction. 

You don’t have to become a new person in January. 

You have as much time as you need. 

Of course, you’re looking for outcomes. Why else would you make resolutions?

But outcomes as resolutions are a trap. They’re quicksand. 

Outcomes live in the future and depend on variables that you can’t control. Injuries. The market. Your kids. Your boss. Luck. Politicians. The calendar. The weather. The price of gasoline. 

Build a lifestyle around the things you can control. Your workouts. What you read, watch, and listen to. Skills you try to learn. The people you surround yourself with. What you eat and drink. What you spend money on.

Build habits. Outcomes follow. 

Your willpower won’t be enough. 

Even if you’re a Navy SEAL, a Tibetan monk, or a Catholic nun. They know that it’s not willpower that keeps them disciplined. It’s their environment. 

So set yourself up for success by creating the right environment. Remove temptation. Add the proper structure. Surround yourself with the right people at the right time. Spend the money. 

Make the right thing to do the easy thing to do.

Fix the environment, and the required discipline becomes a side effect. 

Ah, New Year’s resolutions. 

It’s that time of the year (again) when we want to make changes. We want to become the person we know we can become in 2026. Or at least, want to become. 

So we make the resolutions. “Starting next week, I will/will not _____.”

The gym owners, “healthy lifestyle” pushers , and course-creators are counting on your resolutions. January is like black Friday for businesses built on resolutions. 

And it works for a week or even a month or two. By March, however, you’re back to the same habits. 

New Year’s resolutions usually fail because they’re built on motivation. But motivation is like the weather. It’s ephemeral. It comes and goes. It changes all the time. 

Motivation tricks you into thinking it’s fuel. It’s not. 

So what is good fuel, and how do you create resolutions that will last?

There is no silver bullet, but you can learn some strategies that will help you. Over the next few days, we’ll look at you can do to create realizable resolutions. 

Here are some fun facts about 2026:

• It has the same daily calendar as 2015.
• It has 53 weeks in ISO-8601 numbering.
• Friday the 13th hits 3 times. 
• We’re now closer to 2050 than 2000
• Those born in 2005 are turning 21 this year.
• 2026 is MMXXVI in Roman numerals and 11111101010 in binary for us engineers.
• The Winter Olympics will be hosted by Italy in February.
• July 4 will be the 250th birthday of the US.
• 5 years ago (2021) we didn’t have ChatGPT/Claude/Gemini.
• 10 years ago (2016) we didn’t have the Space Force. 
• 20 years ago (2006) we didn’t have iPhones or Android.
• 50 years ago (1976) we didn’t have GPS satellites or the web. 
• 100 years ago (1926) we didn’t have penicillin.

I wish you the very happiest of New Years and hope that your 2026 finds you being, becoming, and generally leaning into your humanity.

Oh, I created an About The250 page.

Have a wonderful 2026.

Today, you write the last page of your 2025 story.

What kind of a story was it for you? 

Was it a fun story? Loud? A comeback? A progression? A win? 

Maybe it was quiet. Difficult? Sad? A regression? A loss?

Stories can end a million ways. They can be tidy or messy. They can leave you hanging. The characters can walk off into the sunset — or sunrise. They can leave you feeling happy or sad. Confused or surprised. They can end with “to be continued…”

Story endings don’t have to be perfect, but they have to be honest.

Tomorrow starts your 2026 story. You can continue 2025, or you can open a whole new book. How you write it doesn’t have to depend on or even rhyme with 2025. 

Close that book if you want or keep it going. But do it with intention. 

Happy New Year.