New Year. New You. Bullshit.

A new year. A new you. It's symbolic bullshit. Wow, what a jaded meanie I've become. January 1, Any Year. It's tradition to slam a stake in the ground and declare our resolution of a new life. "No more cheezy snackaroonies after 8pm!" We set new goals. "I will have biceps bigger than the rotten cantaloupes at my local grocery store!" Promise to form inspiring, positive habits, and ditch the life that's no longer serving us. Manifesting well intentioned energy focused on changing lives and new beginnings whenever January 1 comes poking about. A smaller scale of all this also happens on Monday mornings. Come Monday, it seems we're born again.

January firsts and Mondays are completely arbitrary starting points. Why not start tomorrow? Or better, why not start right now? I challenge you to set intentions today.

Here's the thing, pick any day - April 1, July 27, September 6, February 31 - or any random day on the calendar that makes your little heart happy to think about. They're all one year later than the same day last year. Then you'll find that every day is a 'New Year'. After all, the earth made did make one full revolution around the sun and this happens every single day. Hour. Minute. Second. Moment. MMMbop. That's why NOW is is your starting block.

Depending on the source, various research suggests that a mere 1% of all people stick to their resolutions after two or three weeks. You don't have to look farther than a regular gym for some basic evidence. Gyms are packed on Mondays and deserted on Fridays.

Change is hard. Improvement is difficult and can be a lifelong process. It requires authentic commitment, discipline, and no cheezy snackies after 8pm. Sadly, no one can battle it out for you. The secret, but not so secret, towards that magical new life you want, is finding your strong 'WHY'. Whatever your resolutions may be, the reasons you want them must carry emotional resonance. Anything less, or superficial, won't work. Do you want to give up cheezy snackies so you look good on Friday nights? Or do you want to give up cheezy snackies so you don't die from heart disease and leave your family behind? While you probably want to ditch the snackies for both of those reasons, only one of those will keep you fighting through moments of weakness. That's a strong WHY.

Life is already a challenge. Improving your life means more challenges from making harder choices. Hard because they'll be different decisions than those you normally make - the safe and comfortable ones. The old choices brought you to your current position in life. AKA: The life that you want to upgrade. Upgrading, improving, progressing inherently means you'll struggle through obstacles of all shapes, sizes, and flavors. If your WHY isn't personal enough, then you'll give up the fight as soon as your new life starts punching you in the face. Your WHY is your weapon.