Inertia

On top of a hill a line of cars sits waiting for a race to begin. The drivers are children who, with the help of their parents/designers, have created a car to compete in this year's Annual Soapbox Derby. All in attendance are waiting to see which of the vehicles will show itself to be the most aerodynamic. That is because these cars do not have engines or pedal-drives to allow the drivers to affect the speed and help propel them down the slope. They will rely solely on gravity to move them from an inert condition to a body in motion. It is a fundamental demonstration of inertia. In this case, the power of gravity causing a stationary object to be put into motion.

At the stroke of midnight on every December 31, millions upon millions of people are waiting for the new year to arrive. They are filled with great expectations and poised with grand plans to make the coming year one of change and personal improvement. Some have been waiting for months for this particular moment to create the impetus for them to move. The date seems to have a magical power to inspire people to action. They are metaphorically at the top of the hill looking down at the newness of the coming year. Unfortunately, unlike the soapbox derby where the finish line is at the bottom of the hill, in life the bottom of the hill is February; the end of the year is still eleven months away. This is why so many resolutions never come to fruition. The force created by the possibilities of the new year dissipates and without some form of power added, the plan for change grinds to a halt. The good news is that, unlike the engineless soapbox cars, human beings do have internal powers that can sustain motion once the initial movement has begun. There is the possibility for progress to continue if the goal that is trying to be achieved is challenged from a realistic place. That realism must account for the fact that current life conditions are usually the products of extended amounts of time filled consistently with unwanted behaviors. For lasting change to occur a commensurate amount of time and effort must be brought to bare. Quick fixes can provide the illusion of success but without a methodical commitment to fundamental change, growth will be fleeting and the unwanted habitual behaviors will return. 

So how does one truly embrace their New Year’s resolution with the best chance of making a lasting change? The simple answer is a little bit at a time. Here are some examples: If you want to lose weight, eat a little less and move a little more. More specifically, if you eat ice cream six days a week then eat it three times a week; go for a walk everyday, adding time and speed; make these small behavioral changes and create internal power. If this regiment can be sustained until March then perhaps it is time to join a gym. If you want to affect the trajectory of your career do not dream of enrolling in a university to get an advanced degree; take one course that is applicable to your goals at the community college. If you have a home project that needs to be completed divide it up into ten projects and complete one each week. The idea is to create and maintain power incrementally and to arrive at the beginning of the next year in a different state than at the start of this year. That could be ten pounds lighter, proficient at a particular computer program, or with the back yard completely cleared of weeds and ready for a new garden. It requires one to accept that current small changes will have a much greater aggregate impact in the future. It is the proverbial choice between being the tortoise or the hare. 

As a young man there were many times in the middle of the year when I would focus on the coming of the new year and the changes I was going to make. January would arrive and I would formulate rigid guidelines to achieve personal perfection. I would make resolutions and promises regarding every aspect of my life. My goals were grand and admirable but without small changes in the simplest aspects of my lifestyle, one by one my resolutions fell by the wayside and my promises were not kept. Disappointment of failure replaced my lofty expectations and more often than not by March an event would occur that produced a court date, a visit to the hospital or both. Year after year I failed to become the man I wanted to be. It was not until I recognized that adherence to small personal commitments created the power of motion toward larger positive growth. This methodical movement, unburdened by the dream of the perfect me, can be consistently maintained and has produced lasting results. By taking baby steps toward a more productive future my goal of self-improvement has moved beyond the dashed hopes of January to become a positive life-long journey.