January has a smell to it. Somewhere between a new diary and a gym membership that has not yet been ignored. We make resolutions with great ceremony. We announce them like New Year speeches. This year I will wake early. This year I will eat wisely. This year I will finally forgive. And by the third week of January those brave declarations are lying somewhere between the unopened diary and the dusty treadmill.
The problem is not that we lack willpower. It is that we lack purpose.
A resolution without purpose is like setting off on a journey without knowing the destination. You may walk briskly. You may even feel virtuous. But sooner or later you will ask the dangerous question. Why am I doing this at all.
Take exercise. A favourite January promise. We resolve to walk every morning. We buy shoes that cost more than our common sense. For ten days we are heroes. On the eleventh morning the alarm rings and the blanket feels like it was woven by angels. And that is when the resolution dies.
But imagine something different. Imagine not just resolving to exercise, but seeing its purpose. A stronger heart that lets you climb stairs without gasping like a landed fish. A body that allows you to travel without fear. Years ahead where you can still lift your grandchild instead of lifting excuses. Suddenly the morning walk is no longer punishment. It is investment.
Purpose is the picture you place in front of you. It is the why behind the what.
The same applies to every other resolution we make. We resolve to read the Bible or pray or meditate. It lasts until the phone buzzes. But what if the purpose was not ticking off chapters, but becoming a calmer human being. One who reacts less and listens more. One whose presence makes rooms lighter instead of heavier. Then those quiet moments become fuel rather than chores.
We resolve to save money. Until the sale sign smiles at us. But when the purpose is freedom from anxiety. The ability to help someone in need. The dignity of not living one emergency away from panic. Then saying no today becomes a powerful yes to tomorrow.
Purpose gives your resolution a spine.
As this year unfolds, hold your resolutions up to the light and ask a simple question. What is this really for. See the purpose of work that adds meaning and not merely money.
Place that picture in front of you every morning. When enthusiasm fades and it will. When routine dulls and it will. Look again at the purpose. It will pull you forward when pushing yourself no longer works.
Resolutions that merely resolve will fade. Resolutions with purpose endure. And hopefully this year, when December returns you will not be counting failures but quietly smiling at how far purpose has carried you..!